Study Abroad Storage - Storage for Study Abroad Students
Study abroad storage holds a room while you are out of the country. Box-n-Go collects from the dorm or the apartment in the days before the flight, keeps it indoors while you are away, and delivers it to whatever address you are living at when you get back. Nothing in it needs doing from another continent, which is the whole point when the person who owns the belongings is eight time zones away. Student study abroad storage runs on the same footing: the pickup, the months away and the return are one arrangement, and the return address can change while you are gone.
Valet
Why Study Abroad Students Need Dedicated Storage
A semester abroad is a different problem from a summer break. The room still has to be emptied completely, but the gap is four months, eight, or a full academic year, and everything in it is needed again at the end of it. Shipping a room overseas costs more than the room is worth. Asking a family two thousand miles away to hold it means moving it there first.
The room cannot be held either. A housing contract does not pause for a program, and a lease that runs through the semester costs a full rent for an empty room every month you are gone. Either the room empties or it is paid for twice.
The dates are the awkward part. A fall program leaves in August and returns in December, which misses the May to August cycle entirely. A spring program leaves in January and returns in May. A year-long one spans both. A booking has to fit those rather than a summer-shaped contract.
The Storage Timeline for Study Abroad Students
It runs in three parts. The pickup is booked for the days before you fly, and you pack whatever is not going with you. While you are away the belongings sit in an indoor facility on one account, with no monthly bills to chase from overseas and nothing to arrange in a time zone eight hours out. When you know where you are living on your return, you name the address and the date and it comes back.
The same shape works whatever the length. Short term storage for study abroad covering a single semester costs less than a year of it, because the billing runs month to month and follows the actual stay rather than a fixed term.
Schools We Serve
Overseas student storage runs at every campus below, wherever the program itself happens to be. It is worth saying what these places are before the last week of the year. USC sits a walk from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. UCLA is up the hill from the Getty Center, and Caltech is a short walk from the Huntington Library. The Claremont Colleges share a walkable campus with the California Botanic Garden at one end, and UC Irvine is twenty minutes from Crystal Cove State Park.
In the Los Angeles area, we serve students at USC, UCLA, LMU, Occidental College, Otis College, Caltech, and Pepperdine University. The Claremont Colleges, including Pomona College, Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Scripps College, and Pitzer College, send a large number of students overseas every year.
We also serve CSUN, Cal State LA, Cal State Long Beach, Cal State Fullerton, and Cal Poly Pomona. In Orange County, students at UC Irvine, Chapman University, and Concordia University Irvine use our storage services. We also serve students at Azusa Pacific University, Biola University, University of La Verne, and Woodbury University.
Why Local Storage Beats Shipping for Study Abroad
Anyone asking where to store my stuff while abroad is really choosing between keeping it here and sending it home. For almost everyone, keeping it near the campus wins, and the reasons are money and logistics in that order.
Freight is charged each way. Whatever a mini-fridge, a desk chair and a dozen boxes cost to send home in August, they cost again coming back in January, and the further the home the worse the sum gets. Gap year storage here removes both halves of it.
The logistics are worse than the cost. Everything has to be packed for a long journey rather than a short one. Somebody has to be home to receive it. The timing has to work around a departure date. And the return leg gets arranged from another continent, across a time difference, while the program is still running.
Keeping it here removes all of that. The belongings stay in Southern California, twenty minutes from the campus rather than a continent away, and the delivery goes to whichever address the return turns out to be. Packing and Protecting: How to Box, Wrap and Prep Your Belongings covers getting the fragile end of it ready before it goes in.
The Hidden Costs of Not Planning Student Study Abroad Storage
Leaving it to the last fortnight leaves only expensive options. Freight home is charged both ways. Family storage means moving it there first, which is a rented truck and a long drive in the week the visa paperwork is also being chased.
A rented unit needs a visit to sign for it, a truck to fill it and two round trips to use it. The return leg is the worse half: arranging a truck and a facility visit in the first week back, jet-lagged, before there is anywhere to sleep.
A parent flying in to handle it pays a fare, a hotel at campus rates and a truck by the day, which usually comes to more than a whole semester of storage. Box-n-Go Storage and Moving Services for Students sets out both services in full, and Box-n-Go Storage for Students covers what a student booking carries that a general one does not.
How Box-n-Go Handles a Semester Away
Box-n-Go turns it around. Instead of finding a building, signing for a unit and getting a term of belongings across town in the days before a flight, the crew comes to the room. There is no truck to rent, no unit to sign for, and no facility visit at either end of the program.
The room goes into storage instead of onto a plane or into a family garage. A pickup is booked for the days before the flight, the crew comes to the dorm or the apartment, and everything waits indoors until there is somewhere to put it again. Storage while studying abroad is one booking with a long middle.
It runs from anywhere. The booking, the payment and any change of date are handled by phone or email from another country, and nobody has to be in Los Angeles for any part of it. Box-n-Go has run storage and moving out of Los Angeles since 2006, and everything sits in a monitored indoor warehouse rather than an outdoor row of roll-up doors.
What Students Store While Studying Abroad
What goes into storage is everything that is not going on the plane, which is most of a room. The furniture, if the apartment came unfurnished. The mini-fridge, the microwave and the fan. The winter coat if the program is somewhere warm, and the summer clothes if it is not. Bedding, which takes more space than anything else of its weight. The monitor, the printer, the console and the textbooks from courses already finished.
What does not go in: food of any kind, liquids, aerosols, anything hazardous. Storage for study abroad students has one extra rule beyond the usual list, which is that the passport, the visa paperwork and the medication travel with you rather than sitting in a warehouse on the wrong continent.
Student Study Abroad Storage Options
There are two services and both come to the address. Student study abroad storage divides on one question, which is whether there is furniture in the room.
Self-Load Flex Container Study Abroad Storage
Self-Load Flex brings the container instead, which is the one to take when there is furniture. It is eight feet by five by seven, set down at the building or in the lot the college assigns, and it rests on the ground the whole time. Load it over several days, close it with your own lock, and we take it away whole.
It works particularly well when a whole group leaves on the same program. Three or four people put everything in one container and divide the bill, which comes to less each than separate bookings, and every name goes on the account so each person reclaims their own things in whatever order they get back.
On the way back it goes to the address you name then. Campus rules on where a container may stand differ from school to school and change from year to year, so check the current rule with the housing office before the date is fixed.
A La Carte Valet Study Abroad Storage
A La Carte Valet counts boxes, which suits a hall room. A kit is mailed to you before pickup day with five Box-n-Go U Boxes, tape and a marker in it, and five is a starting point rather than a limit. Use your own boxes instead if you would rather.
On the day the crew comes up to the room, labels every box and every loose item, carries it down and drives it to an indoor facility. When you land, it comes back to whatever address you are moving into.
The U Box is built for this rather than bought off a hardware store shelf. The cardboard is heavier and the flaps overlap the whole way across, which matters more here than anywhere else, because a box going into a year of storage sits at the bottom of the stack for all of it.
The charge follows the count. Ten boxes cost less than twenty, and a mini-fridge carries its own rate. There is no empty space on the bill because there is no unit. Nothing about it is limited to boxes either: furniture and anything else a box will not hold go the same way, as long as they are named on the booking.
Self Storage Facilities Near Southern California Campuses
Conventional self storage sits near every campus we serve, and these are closest to the largest of them. Every one expects the student to get their belongings there and back without help, which is a harder ask from another continent:
Public Storage, 3625 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Extra Space Storage, 2515 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Public Storage, 1901 S Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90024
Public Storage, 11625 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90024
Extra Space Storage, 18333 Gault St, Reseda, CA 91330
Public Storage, 8200 Balboa Blvd, Van Nuys, CA 91330
Extra Space Storage, 8150 E Wardlow Rd, Long Beach, CA 90840
Public Storage, 2506 Atlantic Ave, Long Beach, CA 90840
Any of them works for a student with a car and a free weekend at both ends of the program. Without that, the truck rental and the two round trips cost more than pickup and delivery does.
What Students Say About Box-n-Go
★★★★★
"Absolutely the best company! I was blown off by a moving company when i was moving out of my apartment at UCLA. I was leaving for Europe the next day and the moving company that was supposed to pick up my stuff, never called or answered any of my calls and just never showed up. I called and spoke to Frank on the phone in panic because I saw one of their boxes on the side of the road. He immediately helped me and got all my information as soon as he could in order to speed up the process. This company saved my moving experience and were very helpful and kind whenever I spoke with them! I am never using another moving company because I had such an amazing experience with this company!"
Monica V., Los Angeles, CA - UCLA
★★★★★
"Great experience! The whole process was very convenient and Stan was super helpful. A good storage choice for international students."
Caroline C.
★★★★★
"As a student, I value this BoxNGo Santa Monica storage unit for offering a dependable, secure, and safe space to keep my belongings when I am traveling."
Lara B.
★★★★★
"Makes it easy and affordable. We chose Box-n-Go for our sons move out of his college apt. They are picking up and storing his belongings for a summer and then fall semester when he is studying abroad. Makes it easy and affordable. No worries!"
Lisa R., Los Angeles, CA - Parent
Storage Tips for Study Abroad Students
Almost nothing goes wrong in the warehouse. It goes wrong in the room, in the last week before a flight, when the packing is done fast. Four things account for most of the damage: food, liquids, mini-fridges and open toiletries.
- Keep every box under fifty pounds. Overloaded boxes are unsafe to lift and collapse when stacked.
- Nothing that pours, nothing that spoils. Shampoo, detergent, half-finished drinks and anything sealed in the pantry all find a way out in a warm truck. Tape the lids, bag them, or leave them behind.
- Defrost the mini-fridge a day before pickup. Then clean and dry it, and clean the microwave. A fridge packed damp comes back smelling of what was in it.
- Label all sides of every box. Student name, a phone number, and where it is going. Boxes are stacked, and the top is the one face nobody can read.
- Trash bags are dust covers, not luggage. Never let one carry weight. Roll mattress toppers rather than folding them, and bag them.
- Pad anything breakable and mark it fragile. Wrap each piece individually. Nothing loose rattling in drawers.
- Photograph the inside of each box before taping it. It takes a second and it is the only inventory anybody actually keeps.
- Keep passport, medication, laptop and chargers with you. Nothing needed in the next few days goes into storage.
Book the pickup before you book the flight, not after. The days before a departure fill up with everything else, and a date agreed in advance is one thing that cannot slip.
Pack a first box for the return and label it as such. Bedding, a towel and a phone charger, so the first night back does not start with opening nine boxes.
Parents, that list is also a phone call. Read it down once with your student and you will know whether the fridge was really defrosted and the open bottles really went in the trash.
For a complete preparation guide, use our printable move-out checklist before your departure date.
| Self Load | A la Carte Valet | |
|---|---|---|
| Furniture Prep | You | You |
| Pack Boxes | You | You |
| Load Storage | You | We Do |
| Prorate | Yes | No |
| Access Notice | 1 Day | 3 Day |
| Min. Return Notice | 7 Days | 5 Days |
Frequently Asked Questions About Storage for Study Abroad Students
Can students store belongings while studying abroad?
Yes, and it is one of the commonest reasons students book it. The pickup happens in the days before the flight and the delivery when you are back, whatever month that turns out to be.
How long can storage last?
As long as the program does. Billing runs month to month, so a single semester, two, or a full academic year are the same booking at the same rate per month, and a stay that overruns extends rather than restarting.
What happens if my return date changes?
Tell us and the delivery moves with it. Return dates shift more often on these bookings than on any other, between programs that run long, visas and flights that change, so nothing is fixed until you fix it.
Can roommates share storage?
Yes, and a group leaving on the same program usually does. One container between three or four people divides to less each than separate bookings, and every name goes on the account so each person reclaims their own things when they get back.
How do I schedule delivery from overseas?
By phone or email from wherever you are. Most people fix the date in the last few weeks of the program, for the day after they land or the day the new housing opens, whichever comes second.
How far in advance should I book storage?
Several weeks before the departure date. The fortnight before a flight fills up with everything else, and a pickup agreed early is one thing that will not slip.
Explore Student Storage Services
Every campus below is served the same way, and each page is written for its own dates, halls and neighborhood:
Los Angeles Area: USC | UCLA | LMU | Occidental College | Otis College | Caltech | Pepperdine
Claremont Colleges: Claremont Colleges | Pomona College | Claremont McKenna | Harvey Mudd | Scripps College | Pitzer College
Cal State Universities: CSUN | Cal State LA | Cal State Long Beach | Cal State Fullerton | Cal Poly Pomona
Orange County: UC Irvine | Chapman University | Concordia Irvine
Additional Schools: Azusa Pacific | Biola University | University of La Verne | Woodbury University
Explore Our Services: Student Storage | Dorm Storage | Summer Storage | Student Discount | Pickup & Delivery
The student storage move-out checklist is worth having open before the packing starts rather than after it.
Box-n-Go has provided portable storage solutions across Southern California since 2006. We are a BBB Accredited Business and proud member of the California Self Storage Association, committed to secure, reliable service for students and families.
Schedule Your Student Study Abroad Storage Today
The room has to be empty before the flight either way. The only question is whether emptying it costs a fortnight of arranging or one phone call.
Book the pickup for the days before you fly, pack at whatever pace the last weeks allow, and leave the rest. The belongings stay in Southern California while you are gone, reachable on a few days of notice if something in a box turns out to be needed, and the delivery goes wherever you are living when you get back. How Box-n-Go Works: Storage, Moving, and Student Services follows the whole sequence, and Your Guide to Storage and Moving with Box-n-Go covers the ground rules.
Call 877-269-6461 and name a date. We will ask which campus, how long the program runs, and roughly how much is going in. You can also visit our Google Business page for reviews, hours, and directions. About Storage and Moving says who runs the service. Book it before the departure fortnight, while there is still room in the week to pack properly.
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Box-n-Go Service Area
Box-n-Go serves students at colleges throughout greater Los Angeles, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. Our service radius covers 45 miles, which reaches the campuses from Malibu to Irvine and from the San Fernando Valley to Long Beach.
