stuff to bring to college

I saw a thread like this a while ago while a was still a wee highschool junior and I didn’t pay any attention to it at all, but now I’m all grown up and ready to go off to college even though i still have yet to grasp the more subtle elements of grammar. Anyways if i could tap into the collective knowledge and ask what objects you really wish you had when you were a college freshman but didn’t? I would appriciate it a lot thanks.

Money! :smiley:

Invest in a pair of sandals that you can get wet because you really don’t want to stand barefoot in a public shower. Eww. Also a “toothbrush condom” i.e. a travel case that holds your toothbrush. Those are the ones that stick out in my mind the most for now. Where are you planning on attending?

Here’s a darned good list with good suggestions, to boot.

BTW, your question is more of an IMHO than a GQ. A lot is going to depend on what kind of dorm set-up, how many roommates, do you trust your roommates, etc. If your dorm rules allow them, you will not likely need 4 microwaves (and I don’t think the power supply could handle more than one at a time).

As for me, I pretty much had everything I needed. In fact, I brought too much stuff (I’ve always been a hoarder) for the room. I really didn’t need all the paperback books I brought, although I did end up selling most of them off at $1 each to people taking literature courses.

Laundry detergent and quarters were always in short supply.

If your dorms don’t have AC, bring a fan. I forgot to do that, and the first 4 days of my freshman year, it was 94 degrees. Ughh. Bring enough stuff that you’ll be kept busy if you run out of schoolwork and your friends aren’t around, but not enough that moving in and out of the dorm is a 3 week process. Bring your school supplies with you…most campus stores rip you off. Definitely bring a mini-fridge if your roommate doesn’t have one. I can’t think of any non obvious ones right now…If I think of any, I’ll come back to this thread.

Good luck…where are you going?

Jman

These are a few things the roommates and I were glad we accumulated:

If your dorm allows it, a little ‘cube’ refrigerator and a small microwave.

Think carefully about whether or not you want a TV. Yes, it’s awfully nice to have in your room- but if it’s there, you WILL watch it, and so will your roommate, even when you’re studying.

A small folding rack to dry clothes on.

Plan to decorate your room with bright-colored blankets, pillows and curtains and with posters and things that hang on the walls- but NOTHING that takes shelf space if you can avoid it. You’re going to want to maximize space.

If your room is going to be big enough, one or two pieces of soft, easy-to-move around, sit-on-the-floor furniture. Bean-bag chairs are okay, but we really liked the cushion chairs that unfold into little beds.

If your dorm isn’t carpeted, you will probably want a nice big floor rug. Doesn’t have to be that nice, in fact it shouldn’t be, because then you will just be unhappy the first time someone drops pizza on it. But those floor tiles get awfully cold in the morning, and sociable floorsitting works much better if the floor’s a bit soft.

Don’t bring anything you love, or anything you can’t replace, or anything that will leave you heartbroken if it’s broken or stolen or covered in Diet Pepsi.

If you’re going to college away from home, try to get a guide book to your new area. Find cool things to do that are unique to the area, or that go beyond food-and-movies. At my mountain college, the folks who could find the best mountain-climbing and caving sites were always in demand.

If you’ll be living in a dorm, bring some cinder blocks and use them to raise your bed for some additional storage space. Your dorm room is almost guaranteed to be smaller than your room at home, plus you’ll most likely be sharing it with another person.

Milk crates are good for storing things.

Get a small basket thingie to carry your toiletries in, and also a pair of flip-flops. Dorm showers can be pretty gross.

To keep your door from slamming, throw an old sock over the top of it.

Buy a small whiteboard and attach it to your door so people can leave you messages.

A popcorn popper, a bowl and some popcorn.

I sent one to my little brother when he went off to college, and he loved having it. It served two purposes. First, if the dorm food was really bad, he could always do up a bowl in the evening. Second, popcorn smells good and draws people to your dorm room-it can be an ice breaker.

Well, I looked thru both threads and there are a few things I didn’t see mentioned.

Earplugs: good reuseable, washable, inside-the-ear earplugs. For when your slutty roommate brings home a guy at 2am and you need sleep.

A room partition: even though the room is small, sometimes you want to divide it… because the room is so small! My freshman year was miserable because the dorm rooms were so small I felt like I never had any privacy. You can also place it to just block the view from the door so your entire room isn’t displayed when someone goes in or out.

A humidifier: if your dorm uses electric heat, like mine did, you’ll absolutely need a humidifier.

And I can’t believe no one mentioned a bong! I think I got more use out of my bong than any other single item I had in my dorm room!

So which college are you going to attend?

Yes…DEFINITELY get one of these. They are the primary communication system in the dorm. :slight_smile:

Jman

Last year I bought this great collapsable set of three shelves at Ames and it was invaluable… if you don’t have room for it, you fold it up and shove it under the bed or behind the closet or whatever… but I kept my phone on it and my mirror when I had to paint a self-portrait… plus all my books. great.

PHONE CARDS… campus phone plans are horrible… you’ll save money by making long distance calls with cheap phone cards from Sam’s or Walmart.

Oh and it doesn’t matter if the dorm allows microwaves or not… my school has a policy like most schools, where they’re allowed to look in your room for “contraband” but they can’t touch anything. I brought a microwave and covered it with a sheet… bonus… more surface space! But the whole dorm used it for popcorn and such and to make soup and stuff- invaluable. Oh, and a hot pot at least…

…and SUDAFED… because you will get sick. :slight_smile:

Offa the top of my head:

Movies/CDs/Tapes/Etc.
School supplies
Extra bed sheets
Humongo tupperware for winter clothes (or beach clothes)
A nice outfit (suit/dress)
Lamp
Fan
Fridge
Whiteboard
posters
cinder block for bed, or a loft
EXTENSION CORDS GALORE
power strip
Christmas lights (note: Christmas trees can NOT be duct taped to a ceiling. It just doesn’t work)
Basic Tools (ratchet set, screwdriver, hammer, wrench)
Candles
Cordless phone, or 25 foot phone cord
mattress cushion (go to Mattress Warehouse, and they have these wonderful foam cushions that you put under your bed sheet. They make a 500% difference, and could be the final deciding factor when enticing someone to share the bed with you.)
Sam’s Club Membership Card
If its cold where you’re going, get some flannel sheets - you’ll never want to go to that 8:00am class in February again
[sub](Okay, Munch likes his sleep…)[/sub]
Wall calendar (what I did was get a big piece of poster board, a ruler and markers, and made one huge BLANK month. Then I took it to a supply store and had it laminated, and put velcro on the back corners. Made a bigger planner than you can buy anywhere)
Bowling shoes (don’t ask)
sports equipment
huge picnic blanket for sunbathing
A plant
Alarm clock (get the loudest you can find. I just bought a “Banshee” last week - wonderfully horrible)
Backpack
Extra towel
Duct tape
Camcorder?
Playing cards
Hoyle’s Book of Rules
Bartender’s Bible
Reference Dictionary
Writer’s Aid
Mini-pharmacy (ibuprofen is your friend, cold/sinus, fever, diarhea, cough drops, VITAMIN C, zinc tablets)
Directions to the Goodwill Store
Knowledge of how laundry and laundry related events transpire
phone card
local bank account
Medical history
copy of birth certificate
passport (road trips can lead to odd places)
atlas (see above)
Well, that’s about all I can think of. I’m sure there’re a few more. And please note, these are things that I found a use for in FOUR years of college. Don’t stress about it. As long as you have duct tape, a few tools, and playing cards, you’re set to go.

Bring a hamper. You can get one at Ikea (if they have that where you live). The kind I’m thinking of is a little folding frame with a canvas bag. Actually, Ikea is a reeeally cool place to go college dorm shopping … everything is really cheap and cool. The rug idea is good…also little cheap artwork to brighten the gloomy days. I’m not going to college yet, but I’m helping my best friend pack for college 3000 miles away…Good luck!

Being only a measly high schooler, I have a few questions about upcoming college life and I figured this would be as good a place as any to ask them.

How early does one find out how big the dorm rooms are, if they have carpet, if there’s a bathroom in the room, if the room is a single/double/triple, etc.?

How early does one know with whom one is rooming?

I think I may think up some more questions within the next few days. Thanks to all who answer.

This is really more of an IMHO thing. I’ll shoot it over there.

FireUnderpantsBoobs: It really depends on what college you plan to attend and what dorm you signed up for.

I’m about to be a freshman at the University of Alabama. The dorm I will be living in is co-ed, suite format. I know what floor I will be on and what my dorm room looks like.

However, I am moving in 10 days and I have no clue who my roommate or suitemates are going to be. I met most of the people who are going to be in my dorm during orientation, and the girls that I could possibly be rooming with, I like.

Ditto on extension cords. Dorms never have enough outlets and the ones they have are seldom in the right place.

An alarm clock, of course, but put it across the room from your bed, otherwise you WILL oversleep.

I’d also like to add… my dorm fridge was odd and wouldn’t hold a standard milk carton or juice bottle, so I ended up having to buy tupperware things to put that stuff in.

Damn, I guess it is about that time of year again, eh? My, how it brings back memories.

Don’t take anywhere near as much “stuff” as you think you should. You won’t have the space for it, you won’t use 3/4 of it, and you’ve got to move the crap in and out of the dorm room. Travel light the first time (its August, why take your winter clothes? Why are you taking those CDs you haven’t listened to in years? Little knick knacks? Forget it - they’ll just get broken and they clutter up what little space you’ve got) and figure out what’s missing as you go. I’d also contact my new room mate (if you can get their name and number from the school) and contact them. No need for both of you to bring a TV, stereo, fridge, blender, bar stuff, etc. etc. etc.

One thing I would pack is some note cards, envelopes, and stamps. You can even pre-print the notes: “Dear Mom and Dad: Having a wonderful time. Learning much. Please send money. Love, Me”

I second the extension cords, and especially the Christmas lights. They give a bright enough light to study by, but they’re dim enough that they won’t keep your roommate up at night.

Plus they give the PERFECT amount of light for romantic evenings. Sigh…

I suggest buying a bathrobe and using that to dry off with instead of a towel - it’s much nicer and cozier, and harder to ripped off by your floormates.

And DON’T bring a TV. It’ll just waste your time, and it’s easier to meet cute members of the opposite sex when you happen to walk past their doorways and exclaim, “Hey, I like Simpsons too!” :slight_smile:

I agree with most of what has been said so far, but there’s one thing that should be mentioned about the extension cords: in some places, they aren’t allowed. At my school, the fire marshall (who visits each dorm twice a year) considers them a fire hazard. While the college is pretty lax with most of the dorm safety rules, they’re really serious about enforcing that one.

A few things not to bring:
Pets. They’ll take up too much time and space, and possibly make the room smell.
Expensive jewelry. There’s no safe storage place in most dorms, amd break-ins do occur.
Lots of cash, for the same reason. Set up an account at a local bank and get a debit card instead.
Don’t bring your entire CD collection, just a few favorites. I never bothered listening to half the CD’s that I brought. The same goes for videos and books.

FireUnderpantsBoobs: Most colleges will send info about the dorms in their junk mail packets and/or post it on the web. You can also ask questions if you visit the campus. Most places will give you a survey after you accept that gets used to match you with a roommate. Most places will also let you room with a friend if you make a special request.