We all know things are a little different this year. College freshmen are going away to an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people in a very unfamiliar time in history.
Everything freshmen are doing is new-including move-in
Freshman are packing their bags about to embark on the best 4 years of their life, but under new conditions. So undoubtedly the move-in process is going to add some extra stress as many schools across the country have implemented new protocols to make the dorms as safe as possible.
And when schools also put a time restriction on how long parents can assist their kids during the move-in process, I am quite sure that doesn’t help with the move-in jitters. As a rising senior I’ve had plenty of experience moving into my new living space like new dorms, an apartment, a flat in Europe or a sorority house, so I can offer some of my best tips and tricks to make a restricted time move in schedule run as smoothly as possible.
Here are the things you need to know about move-in day
Packing. It all starts with packing, which in my opinion is the worst part. When moving into any new environment you never really know how much space you are actually dealing with until you see it for yourself- pictures of dorms do not do it justice.
So when you are going through the packing process of moving your clothes from one closet to the next, I suggest using packing cubes to separate and organize different sets of clothing. Therefore when you get to school and transfer your clothes from the cubes to the dresser, under the bed drawers or the closet, each clothing item is separated and already folded so you can just throw it into the new space.
Additionally, if you find that the space you are working with does not fit all the clothes you bought with you, having it all organized and separated will make it easier and more efficient to pick and choose which items to keep with you and which to send home.
Unload before you take that trip to get online orders. While you may be bringing a bunch of items with you to school, odds are you are also planning on making trips to Bed, Bath & Beyond to retrieve your online orders as well at Target or any other box stores. Although you might have a bunch of these items pre- ordered and will want to pick them up before moving in,
I suggest you wait until you unload all your items you brought from home and see your dorm room and then make notes on what you need and do not need at that point. The great thing about preordering items from Bed Bath and Beyond is that you don’t need to purchase all these items during pick up. You can choose what you want to keep and what you don’t need.
Your first stop should be your dorm to do some organizing and then once you take note of the space, then do the additional shopping at the local stores, so you do not overbuy unnecessary things, or vise versa not buy enough amenities to make your new dorm your new home.
Have a game plan. With limited time and space, go into the day with a game plan. What I mean by this is decide what you value most of your parent’s precious time, while they help you move in. Do you want the most assistance with decorating, organizing, and/or finding and maximizing your storage space. As someone who even struggles at home to keep their room tidy and clean, I definitely capitalized on the opportunity to have my mom there to organize all my clothes.
Because I had a lot of time to move into my dorm freshman year, my parents were able to help me with all of these things; However now with the limited time slots it’s important for new students to think about how to fully maximize their time with their parents. If you are a DIY kind of person, then maybe you spend some of your free time with your new roommate fixing up and decorating your dorm without your parents. However, if you know you have a clear vision on how you want your dorm to be set up and will need those extra sets of hands to get there, then maybe you have your mom and dad help you achieve your creative vision.
Command Hooks. Although I had recommended saving those trips to stores until after you move in because of the limited amount of time make sure you come prepared with a few staple items. I cannot stress enough the importance of command hooks. These hooks will be your best friend for organization and maximizing your space. When in doubt, put up a command hook to hang up an item (such as hats, belts, jewelry, towels). Come prepared with a lot of these hooks because they will be your solution to probably 90% of the issues you can run into on move-in day.
Garbage bags. To help eliminate clutter as you go along bring a bunch of trash bags to put trash in so it’s not in your way and to put items in that you brought to campus, but no longer need. Lastly, a few smaller storage items that you can bring with you that will definitely be put to use are small containers for items such as socks, underwear and bras. These are also useful and convenient to pack those items of clothing in so you save time organizing when you get to the dorm. Most dorms will come with a dresser that can fit these storage bins in, so you can just throw them on in there.
So to have the most efficient, stress free and productive move-in, specifically right now, all it takes is a little extra planning, caution and speed. Come with a game plan, but don’t come with too many items and you should be ready to begin an amazing freshman year.
You Might Also Love Reading:
College Move-In Day: 12 Things That Will Save Your Life – these are 12 of the most useful things that our Grown and Flown parents told us they could not live without on move-in day.
25 Bestselling Dorm Essentials – you can find longer lists, but some of those recommendations are for things your teen may never use. These 25 things are the most popular for most students living in dorms.
