Your Go-To Guide For Dorm Essentials

It’s almost that time of year when soon-to-be college families desperately turn to Google searching for college blogs that promise to help them curate the list of things you need to get for your college move-in weekend. And while some of them do have a good amount of things that you will actually need, here’s a list of nine things we recommend you get for your Fairfield experience. 

1. Decorative Pillows – Yes … pillows will not only make your room feel homier but if you want to make sure your friends and guests feel welcome and inviting, you need to have them! I had four pillows in my bed and my friends were almost always fighting for them every night they came to my room (shout-out to Campion 426!). As an optional purchase, you could get pillow covers and change the colors of your pillows once every month to bring new vibes to the room. 

2. Mattress topper – Living in a college dorm with a mattress topper will make your college life more comfortable and enjoyable. Even though they can get a bit expensive, I urge you to get one as it is something that you could use throughout all of your residential college life … just make sure you keep it clean. If you have the money for it, you can go to any retail store on your way to campus but if you have a more limited budget, go to IKEA as they have more budget-friendly options. 

3. Fan – Even though most of the buildings at Fairfield have air conditioners, the university is not good at switching from A/C to heat and vice versa. You could get the fan for the move-in weekend or buy it from Amazon and get it delivered in the first weeks of school; just make sure it arrives by the start of September. 

4. Command Hooks – Buy them even if you don’t know what you will/might hang in your room. I’ve seen some people (me included) using them to hang their baseball hats, LED lights, sports banners, keys and even photo portraits. 

5. Disposable kitchen utensils – Make sure you get disposable kitchen utensils (enough for a year or to be shared with friends) that includes paper plates, knives, forks, spoons, paper towels and plastic cups. Get a water bottle for your personal use or keep the free one they give during orientation/move-in weekend.

6. Small White Board – You will use it to organize for classes and leave important reminders or if you put it on your door, you could let people on your floor leave messages or write random things. Be aware that people might steal your markers. 

7. Shower Caddy with Shower Shoes – If you go to Target, get a shower caddy and their shower flip-flops with holes.

8. AirPods – No matter what, try to use headphones in your room to listen to videos or take phone calls. Your roommate will thank you later!
9. Storage Ottomans or Cube Organizer Shelf – Rumor has it that if you need to keep anything safe or hidden, a storage ottoman is for you. In my case, I bought this cube organizer shelf late in the semester to organize my novels, relocate my medicine and snack cabinet and everything that was important to me. It’s up to you and how much stuff/space you have that will decide what to get. 

Here are some other essential things that you might want to consider getting:

1. Medicine – Set one of your desk drawers as your medicine cabinet and make sure you include some Advil, allergy relief medicine, cold and flu pills, Halls cough drops and any other vitamins or meds you think you or your roommate might need. 
2. Snacks – I don’t think this deserves a long explanation, but having snacks will save you money many times and is a way of making your friends feel invited. 
3. Trash bags – self-explanatory.
4. Small TV – This is more like a luxury, but it is nice to watch Netflix or use Streeme on a TV than on your laptop. If you do get one, make sure it is 32 inches or less so it can fit on top of your closet, which provides the best view. 
5. Ipad + Apple Pencil – Once you start going to classes with upperclassmen, you will notice many of them use Ipads to take notes. I was reluctant at first, but I have found this very helpful, especially if you use the Notability app with the voice recorder function. If you are planning to buy an Ipad, make sure you use Apple’s student discount or wait for those juicy Black Friday deals!

Well, that was a good amount of things you should get in your trunk before getting to 1073 North Benson Road. Be mindful that this is not a complete list of “dorm essentials” but it includes the most important stuff you will end up using. If your mom wants a full list, I recommend you use this Target list that was helpful to me, just remember that you will not need everything from there.