5 Things You Can’t Forget to Bring to Your First Dorm

Living in a dorm is like getting a taste of what adulting is like once you graduate and are officially independent. It makes you take on more responsibility, manage your money, remember to eat at reasonable times without your mom inviting you to dinner, be severely anxious about rent…

Whoops. Didn’t mean to scare ourselves there for a sec.

In any case, by now you’re likely super prepared to leave for your first year in a dorm. Before you pack your bags, though, make sure you aren’t forgetting these essentials! 

1. Medicine and first-aid kits

If you have a chronic illness or condition that requires maintenance meds, you likely have a stock packed. Whether you have those or not, though, don’t forget your first-aid kit and OTC medicine for smaller problems! You should at least have your usual fever meds, cold/cough medication, antihistamines, ibuprofen, etc.  

You might be thinking, “Why do I need these when I can just get them from a drugstore or from the school clinic? Or head to the Emergency room? Or just sleep it off?” There are a few reasons for that:

• You might feel too ill to even make it out of bed. At least, if you have a pack of medicine in your stuff, you can quickly take one and rest some more.
• Some states require you to be 21 or older to buy certain medications.
• If you have allergies to specific medications, at least you’re sure you’re taking ones you aren’t allergic to.

2. A small toolkit

When I first started living away from home, I brought this cute organizer that, unfortunately, needed a screwdriver to assemble. And I couldn’t root through my dad’s tools because he was several cities away. So I had to postpone building it until I could drop by the nearest hardware between classes for a multi-tool.

Don’t be like me! You’ll probably need small tools along the way, whether for assembling, fixing, or taking down stuff. Having the right tools on hand instead of putting off the task for another day will make you procrastinate on it less. Here* (#ad) are some small things we recommend.

3. A small sewing kit

Don’t you just hate it when you have this super bussin’ fit for a school event and then you realize that, oh no, IT’S RIPPED! THE ZIPPER WON’T CLOSE!

I hate that. Ruins my plans and makes me scramble for another cute idea.

Having a sewing kit in your stuff makes sure you don’t face that kind of mishap, or at least you can remedy it as soon as possible. You may still need to bring them to a proper tailor depending on the damage, or replace them with a last min Amazon Prime purchase, but at least you have a quick solution for the day!

Pro-tip: Buy two small sewing kits and put one in your bag. That way, if you suffer a wardrobe malfunction while you’re out, you can just run to the nearest bathroom and start repairing the damage.

4. Extra phone chargers (cord + brick)

You might think, “I already have a pair of those and they’re not yet broken. Why do I need another one?”

It’s because you might lose or forget your charger if you bring it to classes and then also use it in your dorm. Think about it: when’s the last time you were almost out of battery and you scrambled around your bag, only to realize you didn’t bring your cord with you? That’s a nightmare!

By having a separate cord for your dorm and in your bag, you always have a backup in case one of them goes missing or breaks. You won’t have to remember to take your charger from the port before you run off to that 8 AM class you’re running late for, or you won’t have to worry if someone took your charger after you accidentally left it in the lecture hall.

5. Bedside lamp

Unless you’re incredibly lucky and you have the dorm room all to yourself, you’ll have to consider that you’re sharing the space with one or two people. And it’ll be rude if you open the room lights to see better when they’re already asleep. You can use your phone light, but really, do you want to be blinded at 4 AM?

A bedside lamp is less harsh, doesn’t depend on your phone battery (in case you forgot to charge your phone last night), and is more considerate to your roommate if you need lights at an ungodly hour in the morning. Best of all, you get to find the cutest bedside lamp to match your aesthetic!

If it’s your first year in college as well, here are a few things you should expect before the big day AKA the first day of classes. Good luck!

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