Last month, I posted a blog entry on college move in tips based on advice from friends and my own expectations about the process. Now, after doing two college move ins in two states for two children in three days, I’m ready to pass along my expertise to you. And, if it’s too late for you this year, I’ll repost it next year in July!
Four to Six Weeks Before Move In
• Select and order bedding. For my children, I ordered wrinkle free sheets from Lands End Home. I had the sheets monogrammed for an extra special touch.
• Unless your child attends Washington University (like my daughter) where dorms boast tempurpedic mattresses, you’ll want to invest in a mattress topper. I got this one for my son.
• Both my children also ordered headboards. While definitely not a necessity, they did make both rooms look much more put together.
• Visit your local Bed Bath and Beyond where you can take advantage of their Pack and Hold service. This means you can shop for the items you need in your local store, and you pick them up at a store near your college campus. We ordered the following: very deep under bed stackable drawers, shower caddy, drawer dividers, stackable shoe shelves, drawer inserts, towels, bath mats, mattress topper (noted above), garbage cans, hangers, Brita pitcher, desk lamps (one for the desk and one for next to the bed), extension cords, surge protectors, and stick on lights (for inside the closet).
• Select wall art and have it shipped to the dorm. My daughter was an intern at Art Sugar, and they sent her beautiful framed pictures. My son ordered artwork from Icanvas and Ikonik.
By Guest Blogger Aviva Leshaw, McGill University Freshman
Now that I’ve settled into college life, I see how important managing my time and my space is. If you want to excel academically, socialize, and participate in extracurricular activities, follow these tips for staying organized.
1. Have a good calendar system: organizing your time will organize your mind, and eventually your space. Whether it’s paper or digital, keep your calendar with you at all times.
2. Don’t go to school with every single item you think you’ll need for the year. Plan to purchase some supplies after you live in your room for a while. You may think you’ll use a kettle, or have countless items to fill a 10pack of jumbo storage containers, but when you arrive these items may be unnecessary.
3. If you have a roommate, contact them beforehand to figure out who will purchase shared appliances, or purchase some of these items together when you both arrive at school.
4. As classes begins, if you do have a double room, keep in mind that you can’t control your roommate’s side of the room. Keep your area neat, and always how shared areas will be maintained.
5. Designate sensible spots for everything at the beginning of the semester. Your desk should be your study space, so keep books and supplies in that area only, while clothing and shoes should be in the closet.
6. Utilize all available space. This includes in your closet, under your bed, and on your walls.
7. Put items like extra linen and outofseason clothing out of sight, perhaps under your bed or on the top shelf of a closet, so that they don’t get in the way on a daily basis.
8. If you brought anything with you that you don’t need, bring it home with you on your next trip, or get rid of it. There’s no need keep something the whole year if you’ll never use it.
9. Keep snacks…snacksized. This will not only ward off the freshman fifteen, they’re also easy to grab when running to class. Stock your room with snack packs, rather than anything “jumbo.”
10. And finally, decorate! Make the space your own…it’s the only way you’ll want to spend time there and keep things neat.
