Christmas Present Ideas for College Kids: All Price Ranges

From cookbooks to electronics, you can afford to give college students a gift they will really put to use, regardless of your budget.

Cookbooks

Students are usually thrifty by necessity, but there is one thing most college kids spend too much money on- pizza!

Cookbooks make great holiday gifts for college students if you get the right kind. Cookbooks focusing on gourmet cheese recipes are not what the college student on your list needs. What you should really look for when shopping for your little undergrad is a well-rounded cookbook with an emphasis on low-budget, yet healthy, meals. A good student cookbook should also include beginners' tips and techniques, the scoop on essential kitchen gadgets, and a list of pantry basics that should be kept in stock at all times. Try one of the following:

• "Student's Go Vegan Cookbook" by Carole Raymond features quick, easy and cheap vegan recipes.

• "The Starving Students' Cookbook" by Dede Hall features recipes like English muffin pizza and divides recipes into chapters like "Basically Breakfast, ""Microwave Magic," and "Using Leftovers," in addition to "The Eating Right Pyramid "and "Shopping Tips and Kitchen Hints."

• "The (Reluctant , Nervous, Lazy, Broke, Busy, Confused) College Student's Cookbook" by Joshua N. Lambert and Debby Lee includes a "Before You Cook" section with chapters titled, "The 60 minute Kitchen Setup" and "The 15 Minute, Twice a Month Shopping Plan."

iPods

There is more than one reason why an iPod makes a great holiday gift for a college student. For one thing, everyone else has one and even in college, no one wants to be the only one who doesn't have something. But more importantly, they are a useful form of entertainment for college students who are always on the go. College kids can listen to iPods on bus rides to and from school and walking in between classes. They will even use the gift at home when they want to drown out their roommates' phone conversations. This holiday gift really keeps on giving for years to come. One last excellent argument for giving a student an iPod for a Christmas or Chanukah present is this: students don't always have state-of-the-art computers with adequate file storage. Or, even if it was state-of-the-art when they left home, 4 years later, it might not be. Give them somewhere to store the MP3s besides their PC hard drive and they will be truly appreciative.

Kitchen basics

Students who are living in their own apartment for the first time will realize half-way through their first semester that they don't even own a can opener for their favorite Amy's soup. Nothing goes as well with a cookbook, like the ones listed above, as basic kitchen cookware and gadgetry. A few good pots and pans, a variety of spoons (slotted spoons, wooden spoons, spatulas), a mini food processor, good knives, a tea kettle or coffee maker, mixing bowls, knives, and even silverware all make good holiday-time presents for poor, starving students.

Laptops

These days, desk top computers are like dinosaur fossils. Laptop computers are almost a necessity for college students, who can use them to take notes in class, do homework in between classes, and work during study groups. Though they are expensive, you don't have to blow your Christmas shopping budget on one computer. Try searching Craigslist or eBay for used ones, or buy new from a relatively inexpensive brand such as Emachines.

Daily calendars

Students studying for the GRE will find word of the day calendars useful, as will English and Journalism students. Math enthusiasts and engineers will enjoy the similar math problem of the day calendars, while future college dropouts and philosophy majors will enjoy beer of the day calendars. The fun will last all year!

Target gift cards

When you just don't know what else to give, buy the college student on your Christmas list a Target gift card. They can buy anything, from furniture, to toilet paper, to school supplies from Target. And if they live near a Target Super Center, they can even buy groceries with this handy little card.