by Rachel Mcclain

Created on: December 12, 2007

A commuting college student is quite different from the typical college student who gets to decorate their dorm room and convince their parents to buy all kind of nifty gadgets like shower caddies and brand new laptops that they simply must have in order to be a success. They are often bamboozled into using the family computer and simply accepting the status quo of their same-old childhood bedroom. Still, without the plethora of ideas springing from your child not living under your thumb, there are a lot of great ideas for the holiday season.

TRANSPORTATION
If your child is commuting to college, chances are he's got his own mode of transportation. If his car is beginning to look like it needs a little TLC, help him out. College students, no matter what day-in-age it is, are notoriously poor. Spring for a booklet of oil change coupons, car washes or maintenance tune ups at a local shop. These expenses off his budget will be greatly appreciated.

If your college student gets to school via a bicycle, that doesn't mean you can't lend a hand in another way. Think about how he secures it when he's in class. Is there a better locking mechanism that you can buy? Theft of bicycles is a major problem, especially in major cities and on college campuses. Look at accessories, like a new helmet, a light for the front or better reflectors. There's bound to be something that your student would love to help "trick his ride."

If your student uses public transportation, spring for bus passes for the next semester. Or train or subway tokens or cards. Whatever your public transportation system is, look at how to make it easier or cheaper for him to ride. Transportation is not cheap and any way that you can make it cheaper for him puts pennies back in his pocket that he can put towards his education or towards being more of a kid while he still has time to be one.

A ROOM OVERHAUL
You don't have to go hog-wild here, but if your commuter student still lives at home and there's still a juvenile feel to his childhood room, it might be time to give him a budget to redecorate and let him feel like a grownup. Give him some freedom to select some new bedding, some new paint and let him have at it. College students that live in dorms get to decorate their space as an expression of their independence, and if your student is still living in fuzzy bunny wallpaper land, it might make him feel a little bit like a kid going to big kid school. Letting him asset his new independence and his new adult status

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