What Do I Bring?! A Guide On How To Pack For Your Freshman Year

I woke up the other day and realized, “I’m moving into my dorm room in a week.” Although an exciting thought, I immediately became aware of how stressed I was considering I hadn’t pack up a thing…or cleaned my room all summer.

By Caitlin

I looked around my room, which literally looked like the Tasmanian Devil came through, and began to freak. My clothes were everywhere (and not laundered), my desk was littered with piles of mail from Alabama, bank statements and various other stuff that had piled up and I was in no way ready to pack up and ship out.

I took a breath and relaxed. The packing needed to commence. So, before I even touched this hazardous scene, I thought of things I could do to make my packing experience easier. I made a list lots of lists. A list for the kitchen, living room, bathroom, my room, school supplies, etc. I shopped, I packed, I conquered. Here are some tips I’ve learned on how to pack for college:

1. Take a breath and calm down! You’re finally going to college. This is going to be the most exciting time of your life, so stop stressing out and just enjoy the fact that you’re starting a new part of your life.

2. Write down what you have and what you need. Like I said before, LISTS. If you have something, you don’t need another one. I made lists of what I have, what I have that I need to replace, what I need, what I can get when I arrive at school, and what my roommates are bringing. I promise you, lists will keep you so organized when you’re packing because you actually see what has been done and what you still need to get.

3. Communicate with your roommate(s) Talk to them and coordinate who’s bringing what. That way neither of you have to bring as much, and this will make moving easier. My roommates and I talked about what each of us had, and decided we’ll go together to get stuff we still need as a bonding trip when we’re at school next week.

4. Pick your colors. If you have a color scheme in mind, run with it. I chose my colors before I spent a dime because I could then narrow down stores that would have what I wanted. I chose bright colors so I’d have a happy space to return to after all those hours in class.

5. Bring only what you need. I’m lucky because I’m only going three hours from home, but even if you’re far away, don’t pack a ton of stuff. You can always get something while you’re at college; generally college towns have stores. You don’t need everything in your room, and chances are you won’t have space for it in your dorm room, anyway. But if you’re like me, you can always drive home to pick stuff up. Don’t bring all of your winter clothes right away – wait until fall break to pick them up or have mom/dad ship them to you. There is nothing more exciting than seeing that package slip in your dormroom mailbox.

6. STORAGE. Get trendy storage bins to help organize your stuff. Try looking at the Container Store or Bed Bath and Beyond, or even Target. These bins will give you a lot more space and can act as a table/bedside table if you get the flat surfaced ones.

7. Buy your school supplies when you get there. There’s no sense in bringing notebooks, pens, highlighters, and all those other school supplies right when you move in. In most cases, classes don’t start until a week or two after you move in, so you’ll have time to go to an office store or the campus shop.

These tips have definitely helped me in my packing endeavors, and now my room is pretty much spotless. Everything is packed away in their specific bins and boxes and ready to go.

Got any other tips? Post em below!