Top 10 Supplies Every Dorm Room Newbie Must Have To Stay Organized In College

Staying organized in college is crucial! Most people may not be as uber organized as me but, staying organized has definitely saved me with remembering assignments, events, and even keeping my dorm room clean. So here are some tips that I think will help anyone become just a little bit more organized and gain a little bit more control of their life. Because we all know just how crazy college can get!

1. A planner

Personally, I can't live without my planner, I write everything down in it. I have 12 different categories each assigned color of pen and this isn't even including my classes which also each get there own color. (My roommate likes telling me I'm like Monica from 'Friends' with her 11 different categories of towels). Personally, I like the planners with both Monthly and weekly views, so I can look ahead at what I have each month, but also plan out each week in more detail. Also if you want to be really extra like me, you can buy cute planner stickers from Micheals or on Amazon and place stickers for activities and holidays too.

2. Pens and a pencil pouch

Since I have so many different categories in my planner that each get there own color, naturally I have to have a lot of pens. I have a 20 pack of ultra-thin marker pens that I use solely for my planner. These pens come with me everywhere along with my planner, when I say I live out of my planner, I'm not kidding. But of course, in order to bring 20 pens with me, I have to carry them in a pencil pouch along with some highlighters and pencils so I am prepared for every class I go into.

3. Bags, lots and lots of bags:

All my life my mom has called me a "Bag Lady" because even as a little kid I would always be carrying a bag or many bags. Even now though I can't live without my plethora of purses, totes, weekenders, and suitcases. These are lifesavers when you go on a weekend trip with friends, or going anywhere for fall, winter, or spring break. Plus most totes and weekender bags are small enough you can store them anywhere in your dorm room without taking up too much space.

4. Closet storage & organization

I haven't always been a super organization guru all my life, but one aspect of my life that has been consistently organized my closet. For as long as I can remember my mom had me put my all of my clothes in rainbow order and separate them by type. Another thing I started using in my senior year and carried on to college is hanging closet storage.

So instead of wasting so much space on the mass amount of tee-shirts, I can place them in there. I also will put jeans, leggings, and sweaters in this so I can maximize my space since dorm, apartment and sorority house closets are very small.

5. Food storage:

As for food, we all know that most meal plans for the dorms are gross or they get old very fast so having food in your room is a must-have. To help I bought a cheap white cart from Walmart that my roommate and I can store more food on, as well as take advantage of our counter and cabinet space in our dorm. This helps to make our dorm feel a lot less cluttered like it did before.

6. Storage bins:

Storage bins are a must for me! I have them everywhere around my dorm room, from under the sink to holding cleaning supplies to our fridge and all of our food to hold extra water bottles, cups, and other miscellaneous kitchen items. I honestly didn't think I would use them and told my mom they were ugly but I am extremely happy she bought them because I know I would have once I got settled into my dorm.

7. Desk storage:

Honestly, I don't have that much storage for on top of my desk, but I use what I do have and utilize my desk and my whiteboard that is hanging above to help organize my school stuff. The one organization tool I have on top of my desk is a pen/pencil holder that has four different sections, one for my expo makers (Ultra thin because they are better for writing stuff on my whiteboard), one for pens, one for highlighters and one for my scissors and other miscellaneous things.

As for inside my desk, I have one drawer that holds extra office supplies, because you can never have enough. Another drawer holder important school and personal documents, and the last drawer I use to hold my notebooks and folders for each class.

8. Folders and notebooks for school

Before the start of my fall semester of freshman year, I bought different colored notebooks and folders for each class I was taking. This has been very helpful, so any handouts or assignments I may have I can place in the folders. Also, while I take notes primarily on my laptop, some professors and TA's don't allow students to take notes on any type of technology so having notebooks on hand that even match the color of the folders is very helpful.

9. Command strips and hooks

Command Strips are a must have for any college dorm in order to hang up any decorations. If you are a sorority girl its an extra must have for all of the canvases you accumulate or make that you want to display proudly. I've also noticed that the command hooks are helpful for hanging up keys, coats and other things around the dorm. Every single thing in my roommates and I dorm that is hanging up is being hung up by a command strip, they may be a little pricey but they are definitely worth it.

10. Phone

While I do basically live out of my planner, I absolutely live out of my phone. I constantly am checking my email and writing down notes and ideas to my self in it. Its crucial for students in college to constantly check their emails so having them come right to your phone and alerting you is honestly the best thing so you don't miss any new announcements in your classes. Plus we all have our phones on us 24/7 so why not use it to help organize your life.