The Foreign Service Journal, June 2008

78 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U N E 2 0 0 8 S CHOOLS S UPPLEMENT Moving In “Move in” day at the university is always a challenge. Bulging family cars are lined up bumper-to-bumper, ready to unload Junior and all his earthly belongings on the dorm side- walk! There are several ways this could play out for the Foreign Service student. If at all possible, at least one parent should help the student move in for the first time. In that case, a car with a large cargo space, a good credit card, a few hours in a linen or other discount store and some dedicated shoppers are all that’s needed. A parent who can stick around another day or two to make more runs to the store for food sup- plies, pharmacy necessities and office supplies is much appreciated. It also feels good to know that your son or daughter has everything in order by the time you leave and will survive in the new surroundings. Hopefully, the student has had a chance to visit campus during the application process, and this is not the first time he or she has been there. In any case, the parent orientation is a valuable investment of time. It will provide an overview of how things operate at the school and troubleshoot- ing tips. Not every family can be there for move-in day, however. In that case, perhaps the shopping can be done at post and sent ahead on a United Air Bill for airfreight under DSSR-280, or ordered online and delivered to an on-campus address. Check with the residence life office or the inter- national student office to see if they have arrangements for holding pack- ages that arrive over the summer. Even then, a student will need help getting large, heavy boxes across cam- pus alone. Residence life may have the names of smaller moving compa- nies or services that can help stu- dents. Self-storage facilities or the local rental van and truck company are other possibilities. Making the dorm room a comfort- able home-away-from-home is impor- Continued on page 84 Continued from page 76 Does your teen understand the difference between checking an online balance and reconciling a checkbook?