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The best gift you can give a commuting college student is an alarm clock. I know what you are thinking: don't most college students have alarm clocks by now? Surprisingly some don't, and the point is that commuting student may need an upgrade. The commuter student faces more challenges than the residential student in that they must get up, get ready, and travel to campus. Sometimes they have to deal with traffic or bus routes to get there, so oversleeping can be a schedule killer. In a pinch, the residential student can simply roll out of bed and run to class in their pajamas.

Therefore, a good gift for the commuter student is a loud, obnoxious alarm clock with a long cord. The loud part is very important because college students tend to stay up too late and then sink into a coma-like sleep once they go to bed. If they have a quiet alarm clock, they will be most likely to sleep through it or semi-consciously turn it off. The reason to get an alarm clock with a long cord (or battery-powered) is so it can placed across the room from the sleeping student. If you want to have some fun (but be serious) with the student, you can give them the gift and include a note that says, "Place this across the room from you so that you have to get up to turn it off".

Another great gift for the commuter student is money towards their transportation mode of choice. If they drive, you can give them a gas card. If they take the bus, buy them a weekly or monthly pass. If they ride their bike, give them a gift card to a local bike shop so that they can stock up on bike supplies such as locking chains, bike packs, or maintenance items.

Regardless of what you get the commuter student for Christmas, try to make it something that will ease their experience. Being a commuter student can be a challenging experience, so anything that will help with the hassles or distractions will be much appreciated by todays commuter student.

Learn more about this author, Todd Pheifer.
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