Must haves to bring to your dorm room can be different for each person, but the below list is pretty general. Make sure to start the packing with a check list of things that you really need there. Then, break it down into "must haves" and "wants." This is a great way to really narrow down the essentials. The below must haves to bring to your dorm room are a MUST, for real, though!
A new sheet set is the top of the must haves to bring to your dorm room. It can be hard moving out, so you are going to want to make your new home feel like, well, home. A great way to do so is to buy a cute new comforter set and add some color to your probably plain white new walls. Go for a color that is bright, but not too overwhelming, as it will make your room feel smaller.
Since you might not be able to see your friends and family as much, put their faces all over the walls to remember them by. Go out and buy some simple picture frames and go crazy. If you are sharing a room, just put them around your bed to remind you every time you go to sleep.
You never know when you will need some Advil. Those 8 a.m. classes come very early when you have been out till 4 a.m. the night (or, morning) before. Having some headache relief medicine will be your newest best friend for those early mornings. The local store on campus might not always open early enough for your needs, so try and be prepared.
If you are moving into a shared room with someone you don’t know, you may want to keep your food apart. Grab a little fridge to stick in your corner and fill with YOUR alky and YOUR food so no one decides to eat what is yours. Putting your name on everything in a shared fridge is just annoying.
If you are going to be on a shared floor, you might need to share a bathroom. I highly suggest getting a robe to travel from room to room in. Also, you will love having a robe on those movie nights where you just want to lounge and wear some great comfortable clothes.
Whether you like it or not, you will need somewhere to store your books (which you will be studying hard...right?). Try to pick something tall and thin, as chances are you won’t have a lot of room. If you are sharing a room and have limited space, talk to your roomie before hand and try to work something out. You could split the bookcase in the middle, and someone gets the top and the other gets the bottom.
Yes this does sound a bit boring, but this can really help you out. Again on those early mornings where you might still be a little tipsy from the night before, you will need this. Tip form my days in college: ALWAYS set the alarm for your desired wake up time BEFORE you head out for the night!
Sharing a laundry room with a whole building of young adults is not fun, especially when people like to take out your clothes before they are done. Place this on top of whatever machine you are using at the time with your name on it. This will hopefully prevent people from taking your stuff! Also, this is obviously an essential for lugging your stuff up those awful stairs.
With limited space, you have to make the most of it. Grab some under bed storage for your clothing or other items you may not use often. This will help with the small space and help prevent clutter, which will make the space look a lot smaller.
What I mean by that is something that means a lot to you. Whether this be your oldest stuffed animal, or your favorite picture of your family, bring it with you to remind you of your roots. Through hard times, you may need to feel connected again to your home and your friends. Whatever this may be, make sure to pack it and keep it on your desk.
With all your electronics (computer, alarm clock, phone charger, etc.) you are going to want to have somewhere to plug them all into, right? Well yes, you will. Buy this before you get there, as this is a mistake I definitely made. You will want your computer and phone charger hooked up right away, so make sure this is one of the first things you purchase!
This list could be really long, and there is one more thing that you will definitely want (cough condoms cough) but I figured we all knew that. Well if you didn’t, there it is. Make sure you bring what is important to you and what you know you will want. Nothing is worse than having to go out the first week and pick up some stuff as the other people are all hanging out and getting to know each other. What is the number one thing you need in your dorm room? The one thing you just couldn’t have lived without?