15 Items on What Not to Bring to College

Students heading to college for their freshman year is an exciting time. You’ll meet new friends, classes, teachers, and places. One exciting part about being a freshman is living on your own in the dorms.

You’ll know the basics of what to bring for college, the Top 10 essentials, and 15 essentials you didn’t know you needed, but what about what not to bring to college, and more specifically, what not to bring to a college dorm?

Moving Help® will give you a list of 15 items to not bring to college. Of course, you may use that item every day and find it essential, and that’s OK. For most freshmen students, they won’t find these items as essential as they thought they’d be for their first year in college.

What Not to Bring to College

Bedroom and Closet Items

When packing your dorm room essentials, you can leave these six items off your bedroom and closet list.

1. Throw Pillows

Throw pillows are great decorative pieces to brighten any room. Unfortunately, your college dorm room doesn’t have that much space. The throw pillows will most likely end up on the floor.

2. Bath Bombs

While bath bombs are relaxing, they shouldn’t come with you to your college dorm. First of all, your university might have a banned policy for bath bombs. Secondly, they may damage the tub itself. Finally, if you share a bathtub with other roommates, they’ll appreciate they don’t have to shower with bath bomb residue after you’re finished using the shower/bathtub.

3. Stuffed animals

If you’re a stuffed animal collector, that’s great. The problem is the beds in a college dorm room are small. You’ll need room to sleep — and possibly complete your homework. You don’t need to bring your entire collection with you. Depending on the size, you could bring one to five stuffed animals with you.

4. Clothes

You don’t need to bring every single article of clothing from home. If you live close to campus, you can bring clothes based on the season. If you don’t live close to campus or are out-of-state, make sure you have at least seven pieces of clothing for each season. This way, you don’t overpack, but you also have the right clothing for all the seasons.

5. Shoes

Like clothes, you don’t need to bring every single pair of shoes you own. If possible, we recommend trying to narrow it down to no more than seven pairs of shoes.

Electronics

Trying to figure out what to bring to college? Well, you don’t have to bring these three electronics with you.

12. Printer

Unless you’re in a major where you’ll write many papers, you won’t want to bring a printer because it takes up too much space. Most campuses have free or low-cost options for students to print their papers on campus.

13. Multiple TVs

Unless you and your roommate are avid gamers or movie watchers, one TV should be enough for the two of you. Plus, you can watch TV shows and movies off your phone, iPad, or laptop.

14. Desktop Computer

You’ll want a laptop vs. a desktop computer. Laptops are lighter and portable, and you’ll take your laptop to your classes.

Other Dorm Room Items

Thinking about what to bring to college for your dorm room overall? If needed, you can exclude these four items.

13. Iron/Ironing Board

Let’s be real, are you actually going to iron your clothes? Not likely. Therefore, it’d be easier to keep a handheld fabric steamer on hand or borrow a friend’s steamer or iron. Most situations don’t require perfect wrinkle-free clothes.

14. Items of Value

Sentimental or high-value items should stay at home. Unfortunately, some people steal belongings, and you can’t control who comes into your dorm room 100 percent of the time.

15. Books

Unless you’re a bookworm, you won’t read all your “To Be Read” list while in college freshman year. You’ll spend more time reading college textbooks and college books for your classes and papers. You can bring a couple of books, of course, but don’t bring your whole collection.

15. Large Furniture and Glassware

College dorm rooms are small. Therefore, it’ll be hard to fit large pieces of furniture in your room. Plus, you have to take that furniture when you leave your dorm room at the end of the school year, so it probably won’t be worth it in the long run. Additionally, plastic is better than glass, especially when it comes to cups and dishes. Glass breaks, which is a huge mess to clean, and people are bound to accidentally knock something off in small quarters, so it’ll be better to use plastic over glass.

Trust us, the fewer items you bring with you, the less time it’ll take to move out, and for that, you’ll be thankful for your future self.

Coordinating With Your Roommate

It’s important to coordinate with your roommate ahead of time. The worst situation is having zero communication with each other and getting duplicate items that aren’t needed for your college dorm room.

You can even coordinate together on what each person will bring. Maybe one person will bring the TV and coffeemaker, and the other person will bring the microwave and fridge.

Just keep in mind, you’ll live in your specific college dorm room for only one year. Even if you choose on-campus housing for your sophomore year, you won’t be in that exact same room. Therefore, you’ll have to take out everything you brought to your dorm.

Trust us, the fewer items you bring with you, the less time it’ll take to move out, and for that, you’ll be thankful for your future self.

Pack Smart for Your Dorm Room

Everyone thinks about what to pack for college, but it’s also equally important to figure out what not to bring to college. By using our Moving Help list, you’ll be better prepared for the 15 items you may not actually need for your freshman year.

With all that in mind, good luck with your new adventure!