U Chic: The College Girl's Guide to Everything

It sounds cliche, but the graduating class of 2010 has it so easy compared to when I graduated high school. I searched for colleges using my cousin's huge college guide that looked a lot like a phone book and was two years out of date. Everything was paper and application due dates were just three months into my senior year. Acceptance letters arrived in our mailbox and it was good when the envelope was thick! When it came time to shop for dorm life my parents and I were on a scavenger hunt for all the random things on the dorm-room-must-have list.

Now the 2010 kids have the Internet and dozens of college guide books on Amazon. College applications are electronic and acceptance notifications arrive in your inbox. Target caters to the college kids with all the items a freshman or returning student could want!

Yet some things haven't changed. The challenges of a new college life remain the same ... roommates, class schedules, dating, money, and so many more. A few months ago I saw U Chic (under $11 from Amazon) by Christie Garton on the shelf at a gift shop. I went home to look it up on Amazon and found U Chic is a great college resource that covers life at college, from your first days until graduation, with advice and stories from recent female college graduates.

In our little world money is the typical graduation gift but its nice to also give something a little personal or thoughtful to the graduate. I think U Chic and some cold, hard cash will be perfect for my Class of 2010 niece!