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Your teen may be nearly done packing for college with piles of their belongings growing higher every day. Before you load up the car, however, consider these last-minute items for your teen to make the transition to college life even smoother.
Download your FREE Grown and Flown Off-to-College Checklist to make sure you’ve taken care of all the crucial financial, health and wellness, and legal things for your teen’s move before you before you leave home. They are all the things you and your teen need to DO, not buy; you already have the basic mountain of things for them. These are the other important things to check off your list!
Last-minute things for your college packing list
Heath and Wellbeing
1. Levoit Air Purifier (Amazon)
We saw terrible air in many parts of the country last summer due to wildfires and we’re afraid the trend to wildfires and other air quality issues is not ending. An air purifier may be something you haven’t thought about for your teen until now. Levoit is a highly-regarded brand that makes a mini size with a small platform for essential oils.
It includes a genuine HEPA filter that filters smoke, allergens, dust, and odors. Air purifiers have become a very popular dorm item and are especially helpful if your teen has indoor allergy triggers or outdoor ones and is assigned a non-air conditioned dorm.
2. Mama Bear Legal Forms (Mama Bear)
Did you know that when your teen turns 18, parents can no longer speak for them if they have a medical or financial emergency? Before your son or daughter heads out the door, make sure you have the legal documents to protect them. You want to ensure you can speak to healthcare providers, stay informed, and help make decisions for your teen if they cannot do so themselves. The process is easy, quick, and inexpensive. (Grown and Flown is an affiliate.)
Mama Bear forms $79 (Save 20% with our code GROWN&FLOWN at checkout)
3. Johnson & Johnson First Aid Kit 160 pieces (Amazon)
Unless you plan to put together a custom first aid kit (this is a VERY comprehensive list of what to include) this compact kit will have your teen covered when they need Band-Aids, Neosporin, topical Benadryl, a cold pack and Tylenol. Add the medicine that your teen takes when they have a cough or cold and review the dosage!
4. Boncare 10 Second Thermometer (Amazon)
Since our teens were babies, we have functioned as their human thermometers laying our hand on a hot forehead. Your teen must have a thermometer — and know how to use it. If they get sick at college, one of the first questions they’ll be asked is about their temperature.
If you bought a ready-made kit, there might not be a thermometer in it. They can get a reading with this thermometer in 10 seconds. This brand is the number one bestseller in the category on Amazon.
5. Owala FreeSip Insulated Water Bottle (Amazon)
Insulated water bottles are ideal because they keep cold drinks cold for up to 24 hours — perfect for when your student spends all day on campus. Owala water bottles are available in dozens of gorgeous color combinations which is one reason why they’ve become a super-popular choice on campus. Staying hydrated will be much easier when your student has a water bottle they can fill up at the dispensers around campus.
6. SureGuard Twin XL Mattress Protector (Amazon)
This mattress encasement is waterproof, bed bug resistant and hypoallergenic which can go a long way to keeping your teen’s sleeping environment cleaner and more hygienic.
7. Prescriptions and Toiletries
Before you leave home, locate the CVS, Walgreens or Target that is the closest to their dorm and let your teen know they should transfer their prescription meds to their college pharmacy. If you have time to swing by there on move-in day, double check that the prescriptions have moved so they can be picked up in their college town and stock up on any toiletries they’ll need during those first weeks/months of school.
8. Clorox Wipes – 2 Pack (Amazon)
You’ll want to wipe down some (all?) of the surfaces of your teen’s dorm room before they make up their bed and unload their toiletries. This fall your teen will get sick and they will want to have Clorox wipes close at hand to wipe down some of the communal spaces.
9. Adidas Slide Sandals (Amazon)
Dorm rooms, hallways and communal bathrooms have icky floors and having a pair of easy to wear slides is a must. These are unisex, come in dozens of colors, and are the #1 bestseller on Amazon for the category of Men’s Athletic & Outdoor Sandals & Slides.
Electronics
10. Belkin 12-Outlet Surge Protector (Amazon)
Most dorms prohibit extension cords, and your teen will need a surge protector to protect their expensive laptop and keep their other devices powered up. This one has 12 AC outlets, 2 USB-A ports and 1 USB-C ports a 6-foot power cord.
11. Apple AirPod Pro 2 (Amazon)
AirPods are amazing for listening to music or a podcast but they are also helpful noise-cancellation devices, something that is crucial when your teen plans to study in their dorm room.
12. Soundcore by Anker: Space One Over-Ear Headphones (Amazon)
If your student thinks that over-ear headphones would be more helpful, this brand is highly-rated and very well priced.
Other Last-Minute Dorm Ideas
13. Magnetic Paper Towel Roll Dispenser (Amazon)
Spills will happen, and easy access to a roll of paper towels is made easier when they are held in place by a towel bar attached magnetically to a mini-fridge. This one uses strong magnets that will not move around in use.
14. Master Lock Mini Safe (Amazon)
Consider a small personal safe for secure storage for prescription meds, jewelry, and/or other valuables. This has a cable that can be connected to a dorm bed or other heavy item.
15. Casegrace Jewelry Box (Amazon)
Your daughter may want to bring earrings, necklaces, or other pieces of jewelry. A compact zippered box that can be kept in a dresser drawer out of sight might be a good choice for her. This could also be useful for her to use when she travels.
16. Wundermax Door Stoppers – 6 Pack (Amazon)
A door stop will be a life-saver when your teen moves into their dorm room and in the early days when they want to make it easy to meet and become friends with hall mates. This is a six-pack…bring them all and share with hall mates who might not have thought of this – instant friends!
17. Command Hooks – Pack of 10 (Amazon)
Check with your teen’s college to see if Command Hooks and Strips are allowed in the dorm room. If so, pick up a package of bright color hooks or any of the other hooks or stip combinations; there are MANY options!
18. Apollo Tool Kit (Amazon)
Ensure your teen has a tool kit with the basics to prepare for dorm move-in and future apartments. This set comes in a lightweight case and includes 39 pieces of the most useful household tools.
19. S Hooks – 10 pack (Amazon)
We thought this was a genius idea – use S hooks in a close to hang pants or on the end of a dorm bed for a jacket or a wet towel. Inexpensive and instant.
20. Clear Everywhere Belt Bag (lululemon)
Football stadiums and other campus arenas often restrict what students can bring with them to watch games or attend concerts. This cute belt bag is clear and would be a great choice for your student to have so they can more easily carry their phone, lip balm or a card case.
21. Fiskars Scissors (Amazon)
Scissors are an inexpensive, indispensable tool for your teen to have on their desk. They’ll be so happy when they realize they have a pair at hand when they need it…and they will. Fiskars gets top reviews by the Wirecutter team.
22. WOOZOO Small Desk Fan (Amazon)
WOOZOO fans have become very popular choices for dorm room use. This one is tabletop size which might be the compact option your student would appreciate. It has three speeds, is adjustable and well-priced. If you are looking for other models or colors, find the other WOOZOO fan options on Amazon here.
23. Glamburg Bath Towel – 2 Pack (Amazon)
If your teen plans on playing sports in college, they may need an extra bath towel or two to manage the multiple showers they’ll take every day.
24. IKEA Frakta Bag (Amazon)
We have NO IDEA how we could manage move-in day (and move-out) without the IKEA big blue bags. Light-weight, durable and compact, they fold up into a square and can live in your teen’s dorm room until it is time to pack up again. They also double as a dirty clothes bag and/or a storage bag for bulky lines or off-season clothes.
25. Letter from YOU!
One more thing to remember is to write a letter to your new college student now, while you have time, and have it ready to leave for them to read after you have left.
Amazon Young Adult Prime Membership
Don’t forget that getting your teen a Prime membership will enable them to have free shipping on most items. Prime membership is on a 30-day free trial right now for young adults (18-24) and college students and then 50% off.
Why You Should Trust Us
The Grown and Flown team includes three moms who’ve raised 8 young adults and have been working on product lists for over 12 years now, making them experts. When selecting products they survey the Grown and Flown Parents Facebook group of nearly 300,000 parents of teens, tweens and young adults. They do opinion polls, surveys and ask open-ended questions. They search for products that combine reasonable prices with high quality and are recommended by the large following. With recommendations from major retailers, trustworthy publications, and social media influencers, this post selected a range of products, paying close attention to reviews and price tags
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