Often, one of the biggest overlooked factors in the college decision-making process is on-campus housing life. After all, it will be your new home, and you want it to be as nice and comfortable as possible. Most college and university students are required to live on campus at least their first year, and sometimes even the first three years.
As a new semester approaches, many students are finishing their dorm room shopping or packing for the upcoming school year of living on campus. Make sure you’re ready with this ultimate list of essential items to buy or pack for your dorm this year to maximize on comfort and access to what you need.
Foam mattress topper
One thing that dorms are infamous for is those uncomfortable beds with standard spring mattresses. There are no fancy memory foam mattresses to match your exact preference, so you need to take care of yourself. Mattresses in dorms are almost always stiff, and you want to make sure you get a good night’s sleep after a long day of classes, studying, extracurriculars, and work—so it’s necessary to invest in a mattress topper of some sort.
The infamous foam mattress topper/pad is probably the item recommended most to new college students. They can range from $50–$300, so it is definitely a good investment at any price point if sleep is a priority for you (as it should be).
Sleep mask
Speaking of the importance of sleep in college, part of the dorm life experience is dealing with your roommate's habits and differing sleep schedule. Your roommate may be more of a night owl, while you might enjoy going to sleep early. If this is the case for you, a great way to deal with it is using a sleep mask to ensure you get deep sleep, even if your roommate is up studying all night. Earplugs can come in handy for these situations too.
Related: How to Combat Sleep Deprivation for Better Academic Success
Linens, blankets, pillows, and towels
Keeping on the theme of bedtime comfort, good linens, blankets, and pillows will keep you comfortably tucked in and help you get a good night’s sleep while you’re in college. Usually, college beds are extra-long twin, but check the residence hall pages on your school website in case they provide alternate dimensions. Pack doubles of any linens you buy so that you’re guaranteed fresh sheets when you get too busy to do laundry right away.
Plus, doing laundry in the dorms often takes longer than in your private home—you have to wait for the next available machine if it’s occupied, dorm washers and dryers always break due to the number of people constantly using them, not to mention you have to pay for it at a lot of colleges. Long story short, you want to minimize the amount of laundry you need to do on campus. Having not only an extra pair of sheets but also towels can put some more time between laundry sessions.
Storage containers
Welcome to your space, where everything is cluttered, and nothing is used! You obviously won’t have a ton of space in your dorm, so make the most of the space you do have with bins that can fit under your bed or at the bottom of your wardrobe. With the right number of bins and limited knick-knacks, you can make the most of the limited room you have in your dorm.
Although many people might be tempted to just forgo the storage container and throw as much stuff as possible under the bed, having everything in a container is neater and easier in the long run—save yourself some time by not having to look for scattered shoes! Buy as many bins as it takes for you to bring and store what you need; they’re usually easy to buy in bulk at home goods stores with various price-points depending on the size and quantity.
Related: Essential Packing Tips to Make Your College Move Easier
Removable wall hooks and bed risers
We’ve already talked about the limited space you’ll be working with in a dorm, so you need to maximize that space in any way possible. Most dorms do not come with ample space to hang things up properly, so removable hooks are a cheap and effective way to get the job done. They allow you to hang stuff up such as towels, keys, and even decorations without ruining your walls. They can be purchased online or at almost any general store and are typically classified by how much weight they can support.
And to give your under-the-bed storage bins even more room, you should think about lifting your dorm bed with bed risers. They’re cheap and worth it because they’re virtually indestructible. Besides giving you extra room for storage, it can be nice to just have a higher bed too!
Decorations and pictures from home
There’s something to be said in general for a well put together room, and it shows when everything coordinates. Nothing needs to be expensive, but having a set color scheme or matching your linens to your pillows and towels brightens up the room, makes everything feel cohesive, and gives you a better sense of self as you navigate the new world of college.
Add things like posters and twinkle lights to make it all feel welcoming every time you come back from class and settle into your space for the night. If you feel you need to liven the place up even more, get a plant or two to help bring a living element into your room. Also, pictures of friends, family, and furry, scaly, or feathery loved ones are vital to making your new living area truly feel like home.
Related: The Ultimate Guide to Decorating Dorm Room Walls
Double-sided foam tape
Depending on your school, there may be strict rules on what you can and cannot do to hang up decorations in your dorm (i.e., no nails or drilling into the walls, no painting, etc.). A great way to prevent damaging your walls while still making your room look nice is to use double-sided foam sticky tape to the back of whatever you want to hang up. Scotch tape or putty–like wall adhesives are often difficult to peel off and can take paint with them, but that foam sticky tape comes right off just like the wall hooks.
A low-watt microwave
The age of dollar store snacks and cheap ramen is upon you, and the only way to get your snack on with heated food in your dorm is a microwave. Some residence halls provide them, offer a rental program, or have community dorm kitchens, but it’s often a worthwhile investment to have one in your own room. While prices for these vary even more drastically than mattress toppers, many colleges and universities have watt limits, with most limiting microwaves to 700 watts, which are going to be about $60–$100. You and your roommate can at least share this item, so look into either renting or buying this room-safe oven for your convenience. Always check the school website before investing in one to see if they’ve already provided on or if you’re allowed to even have one in your room.
Related: Tyler's Ultimate College Cooking Collection: All the Best Microwave Recipes
Event- and weather-appropriate clothing and shoes
You don’t want to bring too many clothes or shoes with you to college—again, you only have so much space. Have a set number of outfits for every day, professional occasions, and maybe a couple of going out outfits. If you’re going to a place with harsher climates like snow, bring a couple jackets but not more than you need. You can always leave seasonal clothing at home to bring back with you after you visit on a weekend or holiday.
The same principle goes for other personal belongings such as books. Bring one or two for your own leisure but leave the rest. You won’t have room for a library in your dorm as much as you won’t have all the room in the world in your closet for all your clothes.
Cleaning tools and supplies
Lint rollers are not just great for keeping your clothes looking fresh, but they are surprisingly helpful for your dorm room floor. If you have long hair, a lint roller is useful so you don’t have to see piles of gross hair everywhere. Brooms also work, of course, but if you have a carpeted room, lint rollers are the next best thing. Sometimes they’re an even better option because the sticky paper allows for a quick and efficient clean-up.
Similar to the lint roller, mini vacuums and Swiffer mops are great easy-to-use cleaning devices for a dorm, especially since they don’t take up too much space! Hand-held rechargeable vacuums are a must-have for fully carpeted dorms and for hard-to-reach spots like under the bed. Wet Swiffer wipes are good for cleaning your non-carpeted floor without the mess of a traditional mop.
Related: 8 Important Steps for Your Dorm Spring Cleaning
Reusable and plastic bags
Ah, the humble plastic grocery bag. A lot of people can relate to growing up with always having extra plastic bags around “just in case,” and although it seems silly, they can help you prevent some pretty bad messes in your dorm. Get sick in the middle of the night due to food poisoning? Plastic bag to the rescue! Laundry basket broken? A reusable grocery bag is perfect! Invest in a couple of reusable bags, and just hang on to the plastic ones from the store on the days you inevitably forget your reusable ones.
Power strips and surge protectors
Picture this: Your dorm room only has two outlets—two outlets for two people who each have several things to plug in at once. Modern technology allows for us to change this, however, and we’ve been blessed with power strips and surge protectors. Phones, laptops, tablets, lamps! You name it, and it’s now able to be plugged all at once even while your mini-fridge remains plugged in too. Surge protectors can be found pretty much everywhere, and they’re important because they help prevent electrical fires and overloaded circuits.
Related: 18 Easy Dorm Room Hacks You Need to Know
Bathrobe
Most dorms have a communal bathroom for the floor instead of private bathrooms within the respective rooms. While you may get lucky with a dorm room close to the shower, you may not be a fan of walking around in a towel to and from the bathroom. Bathrobes, however, are an easy thing to change in and out of without feeling uncomfortable and “naked” around others, especially if someone unexpected walks by. You can get bathrobes made of towel-like material or something fuzzier or something fun and silky.
Laptop and other devices
This may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised what students forget to pack. Your laptop or tablet has likely been an academic staple for you throughout high school. With the digital age we live in, having a device where you can access not only the internet but essentially your whole life is necessary for you to have in your dorm. Some residence halls have computer labs, but for the ease and convenience that personal laptops and tablets provide, it’s well worth getting one for yourself for all your online needs in college.
Related: 6 Cool Gadgets to Get for Your Dorm or Workspace
These essential dorm room items may not help you solve a conflict with your roommate, but they will make your life and living with a roommate a lot easier. They'll help you sleep if your neighbor is being crazy loud, curb homesickness, keep you a bit more organized, and give you the self-care you need and deserve as you embark on the incredible but busy journey of college.
If you want to live your best life in the dorms this year, check out all our other advice on “dorm life” right now!
