What You DON’T Need for your Dorm

With college starting up in the fall, many freshmen students are starting to shop for all their dorm stuff. If you’re anything like me or my friends, you’ve probably scrolled through every Pinterest post you could find on what to pack for your dorm, but truth is a lot of those posts are outdated or excessive. Here’s my roundup of highly recommended dorm buys you can completely skip.

Keurig

Every post about what to bring to your dorm seems to include bring a Keurig. While this may seem worthwhile if you are an avid coffee or tea drinker, many college campuses have their own coffee shops to fulfill this purpose. Some dorm buildings, like both of mine freshmen year, have communal Keurigs in the lobby or at the front desk. So unless you drink multiple cups of coffee a day, the cost of the Keurig probably isn’t worth it.

Iron/ Steamer

This one really gets me, because irons are not even aloud in most dorms. Plus, most college kids roll out of bed and go to class in their pajamas or jeans and t-shirt. No undergrad dresses up, and no one will care if your shirt has a few wrinkles. The only time anyone I know used their steamer was for the one or two career or internship fairs that happen. And tbh, wrinkle releaser and hanging your dress clothes does just as well in this situation.

Bed Risers

Bed risers are completely useless at almost every college. Every school that I know of has beds with adjustable frames, meaning if you only want a few inches of height, you can do without the riser. Additionally, bed risers never quite fit the feet of the dorm bed right, meaning if you move at all in your sleep or while lounging, your bed will likely move with you, something no ones wants.

Stapler

This one can surprise some people because wouldn’t everyone need a stapler? Now a days almost every college computer lab has staplers in it for people to use. I guess if you think you will staple a ton of items it could be worth it, otherwise just skip it.

Printer

Going hand and hand with the stapler, most colleges offer multiple printing labs across campus. Well many schools make you pay to print, the cost is always less than 10 cents page, meaning a printer will cost way more to buy that it costs to just use school printers. On top of that, colleges that have additional fees for certain departments may offer free printing. Ohio State’s engineering department gives every engineering student 500 free prints a semester. Furthermore, nearly no professor wants you to print anything. Schools use online platforms like Canvas and Blackboard for their grades and assignments, both which allow students to upload pdf and docs to the assignment post, cutting out the need to print.

Pots/Pan/Plates/Bowls

With the presence of dinning halls on college campuses, and most schools requiring freshmen to get dining plans, the likely hood that you’ll cook in your dorm is low. And when you do make dorm food its likely to purely be a sandwich, popcorn, or ramen. Skip spending money on pots and pans, and only buy one plate and bowl. Having only a few dishes is also super helpful when it comes to cleanliness, because dorms have nowhere to store dirty dishes, forcing you to clean them.

TVs

Im gonna say it, you don’t need a tv in your dorm. I promise you’ll be just fine without it. Dorms don’t really have cable hookups and when they do they have one, it’s weirdly located somewhere you would never put your tv. Additionally, with laptops and/or tablets becoming necessities, you can always watch your shows on one of these. Most importantly, TVs are expensive and take up tons of space. Dorms are small and things get cluttered quick, so cutting out something like a TV will help save space.

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