Campus Arrival
New international students may officially move all their belongings into their room on Saturday, August 30 and plan to sleep on dorm starting Sunday, August 31. If you plan to be in the area earlier, you are welcome to start dropping off items in your room starting on August 25. To make arrangements to drop off your students' belongings between August 26-September 1, please email Tran Kim-Senior.
Students who are varsity level athletes for any of our fall sports (cross country, soccer, girls' tennis, field hockey, or volleyball) will get a separate invitation to attend pre-season practice August 24-30 from a coach. If your student is invited and chooses to attend, then your student can move into their dorm room on August 24.
Dorm Rooms & Packing List
Each air-conditioned room has twin beds (80” x 39”), desks, chairs, bureaus (four drawers), and closet space (ap-proximately 20” wide by 55” tall). The space underneath the bed is adjustable and can be lofted at 24 inches, 33 inches, and 4.5 feet off the ground. All windows have shades or blinds.
While storage is minimal in the rooms, there are plenty of strategies to maximize the space with removable hooks, under bed storage solutions, over the door storage solutions, and more. We advise that you students focus on bringing some essential items and then waiting to get other items that are not essential right away to see what you really need. Episcopal will provide opportunities at the very beginning of the school year to go to local stores to shop and students can also easily order items online and have them delivered to campus. It's also important to coordinate with your roommate when it comes to buying any storage units for your room.
Each student will need a pillow, blanket, twin sheets (extra long), pillowcases, comforter, and towels. The following is a list of additional items students may want to bring. You can also check out this list on Amazon for examples of the items below and other items that students have found useful to have in their rooms.
Required to Bring:
Laundry bag/basket
Wastebasket
Airtight plastic containers for storage of all non perishable food items
Encouraged to bring:
Desk/floor lamp and LED light bulbs
Hanging shoe rack
Towel hooks (Command Hooks are highly recommended)
Storage bins
Power strip with surge protector
Laundry detergent/softener (Laundry sheets highly recommeded)
Alarm clock (separate from a smart phone)
Hangers
Toiletries
Shampoo/Conditioner
Face Wash
Body Lotion
Face Lotion
Toothpaste/Toothbrush/Mouthwash
Deodorant
Shower caddy (collapsible or hard)
Hairdryer
Reusable water bottles (there are filtered water stations on each dorm and throughout campus)
Other suggested items:
Posters
Bulletin/dry erase board
Pictures
Drying rack
Sewing kit
Microwave-safe mug, bowl, and silverware
Mattress pad
Mounting tape
Personal fun bag (coloring books, favorite novel, tablet, etc.)
Nightstand
Small bookcase
Banking in the US
International students have taken a variety of approaches when it comes to banking. Most come with a credit card that they can use in the states and I would recommend doing that if that option is available. Across the street from campus, there is a shopping center that has 3 banks: Bank of America (ATM only), Wells Fargo (ATM only), and Truist (full service).
Bank of America allows students to open up their own bank account when they are 16 years of age. Prior to that, a parent can open up an account for their student. If you plan to accompany your child to the US and would like to set up a bank account for them if they are under 16, you are able to do so at any full service Bank of America banking center. The closest full service banking center to campus is located at 415 John Carlyle St, Alexandria, VA 22314. All you need are your passports, visas and a $25 USD for an initial deposit. You would use Episcopal’s address as your mailing address (1200 N. Quaker Lane; Alexandria, VA 22302).
At Wells Fargo, students need to be at least 17 years of age to open up an individual account though parents can open up an account for children under 17. You should come with two forms of ID, your student visa and at least $25 USD in cash for an initial deposit. Similar to Bank of America, this can only be done in person at a full service Wells Fargo Branch. The closest full service banking location is at 1711 Fern Street, Alexandria, VA 22302, Phone: 703-284-6439.
At Truist Bank, I have not had much luck connecting with them but was told that students have to be at least 18 years of age to open up their own account. I am aware that one family was able to successfully open up an account for their child so my guess is that the process is similar to that at Bank of America and Wells Fargo. The closest full service Truist Branch is across the street from campus.
Mobile Phones
Here are some of the various approaches that students took to set up their phone plans.
Some were able to purchase a new SIM card that would work on their existing phone in the US
Some had an international phone plan that they continued to use while in the US
Some bought a plan when they arrived. T-Mobile seems to be the most popular amongst our students but Verizon and AT&T have also been used; one student had an issue using her non-US credit card at Verizon so that is something to keep in mind. Mint has also been another good option that is completely online and doesn’t require students to go to an actual store.