Heading For College? What You Need To Know

A teenager headed for college needs to know how to handle some grown-up tasks. Like, how to keep track of a bank account, how long foods stay fresh in a refrigerator and what to do if pulled over by a police officer. Knowing how to boil water can't hurt.

NEXT month, many parents will drop off their children at college, laden with newly bought sheets, lamps and hampers.

They’re as ready as they’ll ever be to start their new lives. That is, until the next phone call or text asking why the clothes came out of the dryer an odd shade of pink. Or why is the microwave buzzing in that weird way? Or, even more scary: what exactly does the car insurance cover?

So what does the recent high school graduate need to know?

Laundry, certainly not newfangled, was surprisingly high on many lists. Know how to do the basics like separating colors, darks and whites and what water temperatures to use, as well as what shouldn’t go in the dryer.

Also there is no need to fill up the soap container in the washing machine. Less is better in this case — clothes come out cleaner, the machine lasts longer and everyone saves money.

Speaking of money: if your teenager is opening her first checking account, make sure she knows how to make out a check properly.

Most teenagers won’t go to college with their own credit cards, but they may have a parent’s debit card or a bank account they can access with an A.T.M. card. Of course, they’ll need to keep track of their spending.

They need to have some sort of budget and a general concept of how much they need to get through each period, and what large payments need to come out. Students still need to monitor their accounts to see if there were any A.T.M. or debit transactions that didn’t ring true and if there’s a problem, get in touch with the bank right away.

If you're late on payment for a cellphone or a cable bill, you begin to injure your credit rating, and it can be on your record for seven to 10 years, and that can really hurt down the line.

Parents should teach their children to have “a healthy dose of skepticism” when buying anything, whether it be a shirt online or a service from their own university.
Check out all hidden fees,know return policies, and find out if the company charges a restocking fee for returns, which is becoming more common both online and in stores.

And if you're unfamiliar with a company, go online and search for the company’s name along with “scam” or “rip-off” to see the company’s reputation on the Web.


And what do parents need to learn? To step back. Try not to fix every problem. Saying “figure it out yourself,” or nicer words to that effect, is perfectly acceptable. Read More

I'm Ron Denaro and thanks for joining College Campus Chatter today!

Ron Denaro is the president of College Campus Trips, a tour company providing high school students with tours of college campuses, nationwide. For more information, call (954) 567-5751 or e-mail: ron@collegecampustrips.com