As a college senior at one of the larger universities in the U.S. during 2020, I’m preparing to go back to school in less than a month. It will be the 2nd time I’ve been on campus since about mid-March when the school sent us all home due to COVID-19/Coronavirus. The first time I was there since was in mid-June when I and my 3 roommates moved out of our old apartment.
Now, here’s the thing; my family lives within 2 hours from my school. For me, that meant renting a moving truck and bringing all my stuff back home. Stuff like my bed, desk, dresser, clothes, bike, workout equipment, a couch, a table, you get the idea. It was enough to fill a 10-foot truck and cost me almost $230.00. Not great, but it wasn’t the end of the world. This is the college 2020 during the Coronavirus now, after all.
For my roommates, it was a whole different ball game. The family of one lives 2 states over, and the other 2 have family over 1000 miles away. For them, bringing their stuff home and moving it back less than 2 months later was simply out of the question. That’s why all three opted to rent a self-storage unit instead.
This College 2020 Semester, and the Next, Are Going to Be Much Different During the Coronavirus
All over the United States, there are students like my roommates and me, that are going through this same situation. Some have already learned that their university or college won’t be opening in the fall. For them, staying home and studying from their bedroom is what the near-future holds, unfortunately. For me and my roommates, it’s a bit of a stickier situation. If, for example, we move back to campus and then our school shuts down again, what do we do? (College 2020, am I right?)
Some students will already have paid rent through the end of the year. It’s not perfect but, for them, leaving their stuff in their dorm or apartment isn’t a huge problem. For others, they might have an apartment off-campus. That’s the situation my roommates and I have. What that means is that we pay our rent monthly and, frankly, it’s a lot of money. My folks aren’t what you’d call extremely wealthy and neither are the parents of my roomies. In short, leaving our stuff at our apartment simply won’t fly. That’s why, again, a storage unit is the best bet.
Why Putting Your College Stuff in Self-Storage is a Good Idea
As I’ve mentioned, 3 of my roommates have families that live pretty far away. For them, the cost, time, and effort to move their things back home simply doesn’t make sense. Moving trucks are expensive and so is gas (and they use a lot of gas). Whereas, a storage unit can be super-close by, affordable and safe. Storage is the best, quick solution to get back into safe quarantine conditions if the Coronavirus revamps during college 2020.
Getting in and out of a good self-storage facility is easy and convenient. At the unit I’m renting, there’s a huge front gate that’s keypad-controlled for extra security. At night, the whole place is always lit-up and nice and bright. During the day there’s a manager on-site in case you have any problems or questions. Plus there’s extended hours so that you can go in early or late to drop off or pick up your stuff. (They have boxes and tape too, to make college 2020 a little easier to deal with.)
Another great reason to use storage is that you can rent a storage unit fast. You can leave your college things there for 1 month, 5 months, whatever amount of time that’s necessary. If your school suddenly announces that they’re opening back up, great! You can get out of your unit and not have to pay for any extra time you don’t need!
Plan for the Best, Prepare for the Worst
Listen, here’s the deal; both college and university in 2020 during the Coronavirus have a big question mark hanging over their head. It stinks, yes, but it’s the reality right now. The chance that your school could suddenly decide to close is very real. Frankly, we all have to prepare for that fact. For me, it’s easier because my family lives close by. For others, though, it’s a lot more difficult because of the cost of moving stuff long-distance. That’s especially true if, say, you plan to go back to school in January. Hopefully, by that time, this pandemic will be under control. If so, and your school opens, having all your stuff safely stored nearby in an iStorage unit will be perfect!
I know of some students who have already rented a self-storage unit, just in case they need it when school closes. On the other hand, there are over 60,000 students at my university. It’s a safe bet that students will rent out all the local storage units pretty fast if our school closes.
The New Reality of Going to College or University in 2020 and Beyond Because of Coronavirus
Until we bring this pandemic to heel (I recently learned that phrase in school) the new reality is that colleges and universities may not be open. That’s the reality for college 2020. If yours is open, there’s no guarantee that it will stay open, and that’s why you need to prepare. Lugging all your worldly belongings back and forth around the country simply doesn’t make sense, financially. That’s why renting a storage unit is a solid idea. They’re much more affordable than paying for an unused apartment for 3 or 4 months.
-Alex G.
Here’s to hoping that all colleges and universities can open someday very soon. Until then, if you need to store your items somewhere until this pandemic ends, iStorage can help.