You are about to take off from your home on the western coast line and go to college on the Eastcoast. Your parents are happy for you, but they are not ready or able to take a few days off of work and load up all of your things, then drive them to the new place in the college town that you will live at for the next few years. They will not be ready to help you unload for a few days once you get all of your stuff there.
The best answer for you is to use pods. Pods are containers that can be packed up with a lot of your things, then driven by a company that works with pods to your new home. They are easy to pack up with as many things as you own, then fit into the pod with care so as to make sure that nothing falls over while the pod is in motion.
Pods are less costly than a full moving service, because you will have the pod or pods that you need set down outside of your old home while you pack it up. Once you have it packed and all of the things in it have been checked for a snug fit, the moving company will pick it up and haul it to the new space. You will be able to drive yourself there, or catch a bus, a flight, a train or even road trip with your friends as you start your college lives.
Whatever you choose, you will know that the pods you use make it much easier to get your things to school. Once it is there, you have to unload it in good time. You want to get it empty as soon as you can, so that you are not likely to run a risk of a late fee. Once you have it empty, you can set up a time for it to get picked up. The ease of this system will make the whole move a very easy matter. If you are moving for the first time over a very long distance, it will be a lot of help. You can focus on getting your address updated and your utilities turned on while a team of pros moves your things across the nation. In short, pods are your best friend when it comes time to move away from home.