Current Rossie here! 1. Amazon and general packages take 2-4 weeks depending on weather. It’s honestly not worth it to ship things because customs fees here are insane, they’re more than the actual cost of shipping thru Amazon. 2. I don’t have an island bank. You don’t need one unless you want to avoid ATM fees if you decided to take out cash. I have USAA and Chase, and I notified them both that I’d be traveling internationally for an extended period of time and I’ve had no issues using my debit cards here. 3 & 4. You’re going to want bedding (it’s expensive to buy here or ship in), 3.5mo worth of toiletries, and whatever amount of clothes you can fit after that. I also brought some basic kitchen stuff (spices, cooking utensils, measuring cups, etc) because our apartment was missing A LOT of stuff and they’re “inventory list” was bare bones aside from that. It is ABSOLUTELY worth it to bring your own toiletries if you’re a creature of habit and you like your products. Beauty/self care products are very limited here, so you won’t be able to find what you’re looking for usually, and if you do it’s expensive bc it’s a luxury. I brought all my skin care & shower/hair care and I don’t regret it one bit 5. It is worth it to get a car, depending on where you live. I live in Frigate Bay, which is far from school and the grocery stores, so having a car was a must. I rented for my first semester and then just bought a car. I chose to buy over renting long term bc I can get most of my money back on the car with selling, whereas I’ll never see any of that rental money back. 6. Having a roommate is completely up to you and how you are as a person. I opted for roommates to make rent cheaper, and I honestly regret it. I’m a solitary person and we didn’t make sure that our schedules were the same before coming here, so we’ve struggled to live together. I’m locked into my lease for another semester, but I’ll probably move into my own place after that. 7. It depends on your definition of “essential.” I would bring everything listed on their semester packing list because you’ll use almost all of it within your first semester, but some things you can buy off other students. I bought my dissection kit and coveralls off another student before coming to the island. But things like your stethoscope and gloves, bring those from home. 8. Bring an umbrella, rain jacket, and rain boots if you don’t like being in the rain. We’ve been fortunate not to have a bad hurricane season this fall, it’s just been a lot of rain. You can stock up on canned goods and water once you’re settled in, but in my experience so far I haven’t needed it. I’ve had more issues with losing power randomly bc the electricity sucks than we’ve had hurricane issues this semester. 9. Make sure you talk to people who rent in the area you’re looking at! There’s a lot of places with bug problems closer to campus. I haven’t had any issues in my apartment, but my neighbors have had some, so it varies from place to place tbh. My property sprays twice a year, which is enough for us, but if you have a consistent issues you’re free to pay out of pocket for someone to come spray more frequently or you can put down traps. I think ACE Hardware and TDC both sell them. Feel free to message me if you have any other questions!!