My Favorite Dorm Room Essentials

Dorm room shopping can be incredibly stressful.

Before my first year at Penn State, I was looking up every YouTube or TikTok video about college dorm essentials. Now that I have gone to school here for two years, I feel like I am qualified to give advice on what you would definitely need in your dorm room as an incoming freshman.

To preface this, I am going to be including more obscure items that people don’t think to bring with them for their first year of school. That means there will be no mention of things like toiletries, stationery, mattress toppers, bed risers or shower shoes — even though shower shoes are so important.

Instead, I will be giving you advice on what items in my room have helped me survive college so far. Although it took me a couple of years to figure out what room items I needed versus what I could do without, I think this list should give a fairly good idea of things you need for your room to get through the school year.

desk Fan

If you’re living in an unrenovated dorm, I cannot stress how important a fan is for your room. I remember when I first got to my dorm in West Halls at the end of August, I would wake up sweating every morning.

I had a small fan that I clipped to the desk next to my bed, but that did nothing. It was battery-powered and died by the first night, so I decided to stop wasting batteries and got a 12″ desk fan off of Amazon that I pointed towards my bed.

This might be my number one recommendation for a dorm with no A/C because I actually needed it to survive in my room. Even during the winter, I used it every night because I typically like to be cooler in my sleep rather than warmer. It also makes for good white noise in your room.

husband pillow

Also known as a reading or backrest pillow, these are so helpful if you ever want to do work on your bed, which I like to do frequently. Honestly, I rarely used my desk the last four semesters that I’ve been here, so these are perfect for people who like to stay in bed when they’re doing work. They’re also great for naps since you can use the arms as a makeshift pillow.

Hanging closet organizer

The closets in dorms are very small, especially when you’re sharing them with someone and you have to split them down the middle. One way that I’ve been able to save space in my closet was by using velcro closet organizers.

You can put anything you need in them, and they fit conveniently into your closet with the velcro or hook wrapping around the closet rod. For me, I put clothes, travel makeup bags, and laundry detergent pods in mine. I don’t know where I would put them in my room if I didn’t have my organizer, so these are a must-have for college.

I’ve also seen people rave about cascading hangers for closet space. I haven’t had the chance to use them yet, but I know they work for a dorm closet setup!

steamer

Your clothes are bound to get wrinkly one way or another. The only issue is, it would be illogical to bring an entire ironing board from home. The solution to this? Bring a steamer to college! They’re super easy to use and you can look more put together for professional experiences on campus as well as just everyday life.

plug-in air freshener

These are extremely important to me for multiple reasons. One, your room is guaranteed to smell good. I feel like I subconsciously make a mental note of a person just based on the smell of their room. With an air freshener, I know that no one would have any negative connotations of me in their head!

Two, it makes your room’s atmosphere more comfortable. The scent I use in my room here is very similar to the one in my room back at home. When I walk into my dorm and smell the familiar scent, I feel more relaxed and not so homesick.

medicine

Speaking of being sick, you will experience at least one cold in your first semester back at school. It is essential to have copious amounts of medicine ready to go for whatever the illness is.

I typically have at least 10 boxes of both Dayquil and Nyquil, painkillers, Emergen-C and more. Not only is this useful for you, but it is also useful for your roommate(s) when they are sick. I remember last year, all of my roommates came to me to ask for Dayquil and Nyquil, so it helps everyone out and is essential to the college experience.

decorations to remind you of your friends and family

During your first semester away from home, times can be tough. You’re still adjusting to college life, and it is almost everyone’s first time away from home for an extended amount of time. In order to combat the feeling of being homesick, I pack knickknacks that remind me of the people I care about most.

This includes picture books, paintings, stuffed animals and more. Having these pieces of my friends and family with me at school makes the distance feel much smaller.

desk mirror and full-length mirror

I feel it is important to have both of these types of mirrors. The desk mirror is used for makeup and getting ready in the morning because I would prefer to sit down while I am doing this. Then, the full-length mirror is perfect for ensuring all of your outfits look alright — and for mirror selfies, of course.

You can put your full-length mirror anywhere, but to promote more space in my already somewhat small room, I have a hangable one that I put on the back of my closet door.

laundry bag

Instead of having to carry an entire hamper of clothes to your dorm building’s laundry room, a laundry bag is an incredibly helpful asset to have in college. The process is a lot easier, especially if you get a laundry backpack. The bag I use is a travel bag, so after I use it, I can fold and zip it up to become handheld and easily portable. It makes the laundry experience a lot more enjoyable and more practical!

Brita

Lastly, the Brita. A water filter is so important to the college experience. You’re saving money by not constantly buying water bottles and, I don’t know about you, but I don’t trust college campus water.

Whether filling up the Brita at a water fountain or in a sink, they are helpful for any setting. Now that I’ve had a Brita for the last few semesters, I couldn’t imagine college without it.

Happy shopping and get ready for the best college experience!

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