Packing for College

So it is time. You’ve gone through all the college admissions work, finalized your financial aid, and enrolled at your school. Now it’s time to pack for college. Different students will need to pack at different times. Some students will start school in early August, while others might start in late September. Other students may even leave for school at the beginning of the summer. These people might be enrolling in summer classes or be participating in a sport that requires them to be on campus before school actually starts.

Packing for college can seem like a daunting task, but it isn’t if you give yourself enough time. The important thing is to begin early and allow yourself plenty of time to decide what you need to take.

What do you take? What do you leave behind? Those are the two questions. The easiest way to decide is to make an inventory of your daily life. As you go about your day, write down the things that you use. It is best to do this for an entire week. Most people will not use everything that they will need in the same day. Also, make sure that you include weekend days. Your routine on weekends likely differs from your routine for weekdays. After your week of inventory, take a look at your list. Is there anything you wrote down that you probably won’t need? Is there something noticeably missing from the list? After doing this, you should have most of what you need for your daily life.

Next, you need to consider things that will change-#8221;most importantly, the weather. You need to take things for both cold weather and warm weather, especially if you will be a long way from home and won’t be able to go back for such things. First, consider your clothes. You should take both warm clothes and cool clothes. Be sure to take a warm coat. It is easy to forget these things when you are moving in during such a warm time of the year. Also, think about how much room you will have. You might not be able to take all of your clothes. Second, think about things for your room. Many places do not have air conditioning, so you might need a fan or two. If you like other things when it gets cold out, such as additional blankets, take those as well.

You also need to contact your roommate. Your college should send your roommate assignment with your housing information. It should include a way to contact them. Speak with your roommate to find out what he or she is bringing. You will likely have doubles of some things, which will allow you to cut back on what you need to take. Your roommate might also give you ideas for things that you have forgotten about.

Other recommendations will probably come from your school, your parents, or your friends. After doing all this, you should be ready to move to college. If not, at least you will have everything you need packed.