It wasn’t all that long ago that those of us on the PurseBlog team were shopping for school bags ourselves. I’m the baby of the group, and since it’s August (side note: how?), this marks the fifth anniversary of the very last time I went back-to-school shopping. Despite the advent of things like iPads and Kindles in those intervening years, though, I feel pretty confident that a college student still considers the same things when shopping for a school bag: fashion, function and price. Oh, and will it fit a laptop? Why won’t online retailers tell us if a bag will fit a 15″ laptop?

Rant aside, we’ve made some picks for those of you looking for a school bag (or for those of us who are out of school and just want a casual, cost-effective option for when you need to carry more than usual). We tried to be as price-conscious as possible, considering the generally modest means of students, which means that our picks start at $33 and top out at $695 for a leather Theyskens’ Theory backpack. (So worth it, you guys.) Check out our picks after the jump.

Longchamp Mary Katrantzou Tote, $540 via Bloomingdale’s

LeSportsac Voyager Backpack, $120 via Bloomingdale’s

Oryany Cassie Convertible Tote, $458 via Neiman Marcus

Adidas Originals Backpack, $36.45 via ASOS

Cynthia Vincent Berkeley Large Tote, $350 via Neiman Marcus

Herschel Little America Backpack, $132 via ASOS

Theyskens’ Theory Vera Backpack, $695 via ShopBop

Madewell Transport Tote, $168 via ShopBop

ASOS Photographic Print Tote, $33.14 via ASOS