Packed Boxes Ready for Pallet
This is not about “motivating” a student. That’s a separate topic. This is about how to move a student from Colorado College or UCCS home for summer break, a new college for extended classes, or abroad for intensive studies. It’s about shipping the accumulated stuff after a year in a dorm room or small apartment – a small move.
Students have a full plate at the end of a semester, particularly at the end of the school year. Making the necessary shipping arrangements to move a student before final exams checks one thing off the list and clears the plate for studying, final projects, and, of course, socializing.
Start the process by organizing. Ask some questions.
- What can be recycled? Organizations like Discover Goodwill of Southern and Western Colorado thrive on donations of gently used clothing, household goods, furniture, and electronics. Old cell phones can be donated to Cell Phones for Soldiers.
- What can be sold? Books can be sold on Amazon or on campus. Savvy students sell electronics and other items online. Get a shipping estimate for larger items before posting them for sale.
- What can be discarded? Get rid of the items that have outlived their usefulness and cannot be donated or repurposed.
- What is absolutely needed for the final few weeks at school? This is anything that can be safely packed in a suitcase. Everything else can be shipped ahead. Pak Mail can also pick up, pack, and store all of the non-essential items, and ship them when the final boxes are ready.
- What items require special packing? It’s a definite no-no to pack electronics in the middle of clothing. Leave those items for the professionals.
There are several ways to ship a student… their stuff, that is. If there are three or four boxes, UPS or FedEx (DHL for international) is probably the best option. If there are more boxes and a myriad of sports equipment, shipping them all together on a pallet with an LTL truck carrier is more cost effective. US Air Force Academy foot lockers are best shipped on a pallet.
Get an estimate, arrange for pickup and shipping, and get on with studying.
