Moving into a dorm room sounds pretty straightforward. The good news is that there’s nothing particularly complicated about it and your parents will most likely be there to help you each step of the way too.
All you need to do is familiarize yourself with the most important things to know before moving into a dorm and you’ll be ready to handle your dorm move in-day without having to go through any moving stress or fear of the unknown.
Follow these 10 tips for moving into a dorm for a successful start of your college year.
Step 1. Decide whether to move into a dorm or move into off-campus housing
When moving to college, the very first thing you need to decide is where you’ll live. The two fundamental options before you are to live in the dorms on campus or rent an apartment or a house off campus.
Living in the dorms is the more popular option for college students in their first and second year as they can stay more involved with the college and will get to meet and befriend many new students effortlessly.
Living off-campus is the usual choice for college students who have been around for a year or two. This way, they can be more independent and live in a place with fewer restrictions.
Read also: Should you move off-campus?
Step 2. Learn more about your dorm room in advance
If dorm life sounds like the logical choice for you, then you’re going to have to contact the Housing Department of your college and request more information about your future dorm room. You need that info in advance in order to prepare well for your upcoming college move.
Try to get specific details about the size of your dorm room and maybe even its shape and layout. What about the common areas? Will there be a kitchenette? Will the bathrooms be shared? Try to find out what the college provides (a refrigerator, a microwave, basic furniture pieces, etc.) and what it doesn’t.
Also, request more information about any prohibited items you’re not allowed to bring with you.
Step 3. Create a packing list for moving into a dorm
One common mistake most college students make is to take A LOT of stuff with them when moving into a dorm. Be extra careful what you bring with you simply because you’ll be moving from a larger living space in your own home into a much smaller space in the tiny dorm room.
Create a packing list of all the things that you will need. It’s best to have one list for the items that you already have and a separate one for the things you need to purchase before the move. Revise those lists several times and move to the dorms only with the most essential items.
See also: What to pack when moving to college
Step 4. Coordinate things with your roommate(s)
If possible, learn who your roommate or roommates will be and try to get in touch with them before the dorm move-in day. It’s important to be able to coordinate with your future roommate what each one will bring so that you don’t end up with duplicate items.
Given the size of a standard college dorm room, you won’t have enough space for storing unnecessary things so certain compromises will have to be made. Before you start packing to move into a dorm, check with your college roommate about what your room will need and come up with a plan to split fairly the room necessities.
Step 5. Decide how you’re going to move into your dorm
The next item on your moving into a dorm checklist is to organize the transportation of your things to your college dorm. In most cases, the move distance from your home to the dorm itself will give you a good idea of your available move options.
If the college and its dorms are located not too far from where you live, then maybe your best option is to ask your parents to take you and your stuff there on the dorm move-in day. Or you can share a ride with a friend who’s going the same way.
On the other hand, if you’re moving into a dorm located out of state, then consider hiring an experienced college moving company that offers good discounts for college students.
Click here to learn how much a college mover will charge you for a stress-free move to your college dorm.
Step 6. Breeze through your dorm move-in day
If you’ve had the chance to communicate with your roommate before you pack up your things for college, you won’t need to bring redundant items to your dorm room. But that’s not all – you also won’t need to move in and unpack at the same time because one of you can come a bit earlier to avoid you both tripping over into each other’s items.
You’ll probably be given a time slot to move into your dorm room. As a rule of thumb, it’s always a good idea to schedule to arrive earlier than that – you’ll be thankful that you did later on when you catch a glimpse of the traffic of new students moving into the college dorms.
Step 7. Inspect your dorm room before moving in
When you’re moving into your dorm room, one of the very first things you need to do is inspect that room for any damage – from stains on the carpet to chipped pieces of furniture. Most likely, you’ll be given a detailed list of things to examine before you start unpacking.
This task is important, so make an effort to mark off any problematic areas after a thorough inspection. Fill in the forms diligently and check the right boxes carefully to avoid being charged for pre-existing damage when your dorm move-out date arrives in a year or so.
Step 8. Meet up with your Resident Assistant (RA)
The best way to move into a college dorm is to follow the above steps for a problem-free start of your dorm life. The next step to having a smooth college move-in day is to locate and introduce yourself to your Resident Assistant (RA) as soon as you make it to the college campus.
The Resident Assistant is the person who you should turn to when you have dorm-related questions or need something. For example, if you have any problems or conflicts with your roommate, you can go to your RA and ask them for assistance in resolving the matter peacefully.
Step 9. Inquire about the Quiet Time
As soon as you move into your dorm room and unpack your things, find out if the college dorm has the so-called Quite Time hours – the period of time when silence is supposed to set in because most students are either sleeping or studying.
Some dorms have an explicit policy for such quiet hours so once you learn when they are, be sure to take full advantage of them. Plan your days in a way so that you can get peace and quiet to study without too many distractions. Dorms are notorious for being too noisy so you must find a way be able to squeeze in time to study.
Step 10. Set up an agreement with your roommate
Our last piece of advice for moving into a dorm is all about establishing a healthy relationship with your roommate or roommates. Your priority task is to set up an agreement so that no unwanted conflicts arise and you both get to be comfortable in your own college dorm room.
Here are a few examples of what your roommate contract should include: setting quiet hours for the room, rules about visitors and how long they will be allowed to stay, what the room temperature should be during the different seasons, rules about distributing the chores around the dorm room, and so on.
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