Looking for advice from mummas who have sent the kids to uni in another town. My son will be heading off to Brisbane to study at university next year and of course this mumma is freaking out. This means leaving his home and his mummy who does most things for him, although he is pretty self sufficient as far as looking after himself. What are your tips, hints, things we need to think about to make sure we are organised? Things that will help make the transition easier, for both of us, things he may need moving away from home. He will be living on campus. Currently are in the process of ordering his own medicare card, ordered private healh care card, checked out roadside assistance to make sure he is covered if he needs it with his car. Obviously financial worries for him when he is down there is also a big thing although he will get a part time job eventually once he is settled. Not entitled to Centrelink as its based on our income although he will be living away. Anything else he needs to apply for or things that will help him out when he is living away from home. TIA
4 Replies
I used to employ a lot of uni students and that included students who lived away from home.
He definitely won't be alone! There will be a lot if support in the form of peers in the same situation. Peers who live locally and formal supports on campus that all unis have these days.
Most unis have medical/gps, mental health support, study support etc etc. so he will have as much support as he chooses to use.
Most students I've employed started out living in student accomodation and once they found some friends started to move into share houses etc.
It sounds like you have all the necessities covered it's ok if he needs to buy some stuff once he gets here. It's all part of the adventure.
You sound pretty sorted mumma! I can highly recommend living on campus. It's what I did and as a country kid that didn't know anyone's it was the best thing I could've done - they organise loads of social activities and tend to have older ones looking out for the newbies. He'll make some awesome, lifelong friends. Centrelink is the only other thing that I can think of that you may need to organise if it applies to him. Otherwise it's all an adventure. He (and you!) will be fine š
He might be able to apply for Independent Centrelink (so not based on parents income) based on the claim that he needs to be closer to uni- and considering the uni is in a different state that seems completely reasonable grounds. Have a look on Centrelink and see under what circumstances he can apply for it- although it's mostly for adults over 22 years old there are exceptions, I was one of them! Good luck :)
My daughter moved 5 hours away from home. She was terribly home sick for a few months. Sheās now half way through her degree, and while she still misses us (and the dog mostly) she is very independent.
Living on campus is a great way to spread their wings without being completely on their own, struggling to pay bills, cook, clean, etc.
They have other young people on their campus who act as mentors then thereās the head of college, study mentors, student services personnel are great, and the Uni has Counsellors too. The college (accomodation) organise lots of social activities as thereās plenty of āfreshersā In the same boat.
My daughter had a self contained room, her choice, however most of the other colleges have a single bed in a room, a desk, cupboard and not much else. If heās in this type of room, get him a bar fridge (if permitted) and pre-purchase meals for him if they have a food hall/cafeteria.
I ensured my daughter had the premium roadside assistance for the long drive to/from home. She has her own Medicare card, HCC, receives youth allowance, rent assistance and a yearly start up and bi annual loan from Centrelink. See if your son qualifies for either of those. Iām on a carers pension so my daughter can access the maximum payments.
Make sure he has enough phone credit to phone or Skype whenever he needs. I had quite a few teary lengthy late night phone calls in the beginning. That shit is hard! We are a very close family, spent a lot of time together. My daughter is not big on socialising, parties, drinking, etc but now has a BF and some nice friends. Sheās about to move into a different set up, still on campus, but itās a self contained 4 bedroom unit, so another step closer to the outside world.
Depending on how far away you live, take regular trips to visit, or have him come home (if he wants/needs) every month or so.
My daughter still sees a doctor, dentist, hairdresser, etc when she comes home for longer breaks. If itās an emergency, they usually have a Uni medical centre that bulk bill.
Donāt hesitate to contact the head of college to ask for help if your son is struggling, whether it be with the work load, homesickness or whatever, they are there to help.
I cried heaps leading up to my daughter going, but once we settled her in and saw her in that environment, well, I was ok then. We booked a holiday house near the Uni for the 5 of us for 4 days so we werenāt rushed to settle her in. The dog even got to come for a holiday š š
Good luck! Itās a scary yet exciting time.
PS textbooks are expensive, try to buy second hand