My DS is a junior this year at a college on the other side of the country. I send him a lot of packages. Most are things he asks for (a phone charger, a knee brace, an exercise band, etc.). I order almost everything from
Amazon and frequently toss in little surprises (a bag of candy, cookies, etc.) with whatever else he needs. I've found that if I send too much random stuff, it doesn't get used or eaten because he simply doesn't have the time. The two things I know he can always use are Starbuck's card and money!
At the beginning of his freshman year, I got together with a bunch of moms and made care packages. All of our kids graduated high school together and had gone off to different schools. We each brought enough of one item (snacks, gum, popcorn, etc.) for all of the kids and laid it all out on a table. After drinking margaritas and talking about sending our kids away to school, we each got a box and made a care package for our own child. Then we passed around cards for each kid and we all signed them. My DS said he loved reading the messages from his friends' moms and getting a nice assortment of stuff in the mail.