I’m getting two college kids ready for school this week.

My daughter will be a sophomore and is attending college out-of-state. My husband and I have also taken into our home a student who will be attending Monroe County Community College this fall. So we have both “dorm life” and “commuter life” details to work out over the next few days.

Many of those details involve money. Daughter and I need to settle out a few budget line items such as her share of our family cell phone plan. We’re teaching the commuter student how to get around town via Lake Erie Transit and the details of her cell phone plan. In the meantime, daughter needed a new desk lamp. I told the commuter student she needed a lunch box because a la carte lunch prices are expensive. Etc.

The Wall Street Journal has this report, posted today with some Michigan examples at Detroit News, called Study up on doling money out to your college freshman.

A snippet:

It can be mind-boggling to think that the kid will require even more dough after you’ve paid thousands of dollars in tuition, room and board, purchased a new computer and budgeted for books and transportation. How much can a teenager really need, other than necessities like toothpaste and shampoo?

A fair bit, it turns out. Toiletries, printer cartridges, dorm decor and school supplies can take a chunk, for starters. And while many campuses are teeming with dining options (including food courts) and cheap entertainment, students want to go out occasionally to see a movie, shop, go on a road trip or just take a break from the monotony of institutional food. …

Michigan State University’s financial aid office recommends $1,696 a year for an in-state undergraduate — above and beyond meal plans, books and school supplies. The University of Michigan, by contrast, suggests $2,054.

One of the annoying expenses for the dorm students will be laundry. Did you ever wonder why there’s a running joke about college kids bringing home laundry to wash? It’s not that they’re lazy about doing chores, although that may be part of it. The bottom line is they’d rather spend that $5 on pizza, music downloads or adult beverages.

And you’ll also find it smart to phase in adult banking services. Start with a savings account and add their first “real” (no co-signer) checking account at age 18. After they get used to doing their own banking and bookkeeping, discuss when is a good time to get the first credit card. I wouldn’t add the credit card into the mix until they are comfortable handling other finances, or unless you parents expect to be paying that credit card bill on a regular basis.