Acceptance letter? Check.
Uni accommodation? Check.
Stuff for accommodation… agh.
You won’t believe the things you’ll forget to pack for uni! But don’t worry, we’ve created a list of everything you need to bring to student halls…
Uni accommodation shopping may be an exciting prospect for many of you, because – let’s face it – it’s new stuff! But when I had to do it, I realised that actually, it’s quite difficult. You might look at the list I’m about to give you and be like: “isn’t that obvious?” but let me tell you – some of these things are surprisingly easy to forget. The important thing to take note of here is that you want to bring as little as possible. The reason I say this is because I know people who brought their life possessions dating back to when they were five, and these just aren’t needed. More importantly, you probably won’t have the room! Your flat will be a good size, but you must remember that it is designed for you to bring only what you need.
So, the best way to go about this is to break it down room by room:
Kitchen essentials:
- Plates
- Bowls
- Glasses/mugs (want to be the hero of your halls? Bring plastic cups – they’re great during those first few months
) - Pots and pans (the frying and sauce variety – it’s difficult doing a fried egg sunny-side-up in a saucepan!)
- Tupperware (v. useful for when you’ve made a truckload of lasagne that will last the week)
- Cutlery
- Utensils – wooden spoon, spatula, sharp knives, can-opener, cheese grater, etc.
- Chopping board
- Sieve and/or colander
- Cooking trays
- Measuring jug
- Tin foil and cling film (it might be worth me mentioning that tin foil should never, ever be put in the microwave and cling film should never, ever be put in the oven – always the other way around. I made that mistake, and it cost me my dinner/smart person status)
- Tea towels
Kitchen extras:
- Pizza cutter
- Microwave egg poacher
- Food scales
- Whisk (whisks make great pretend-microphones if you ever find yourself playing The Voice… or was that just us?)
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to bring lots of appliances. From my own experience, it is best not to take a toaster or kettle, as the chances are that someone else has picked one up. If, however, you all follow this advice and nobody turns up with any of these things at all, you can split the cost between the flat when you get there. Trip to Wilko, anyone?
Bedroom essentials:
- Bedding and pillows (mattress provided, luckily )
- Desk lamp
- Coat hangers
- Towels
- Alarm clock (obviously – you wouldn’t want to be late for lectures)
- Clothes (again, obviously – you wouldn’t want to be naked)
- Drying rack (v. useful if you don’t want your wet clothes hanging from every available ledge)
- First aid supplies (just in case you happen to fall over and hurt yourself for some completely inexplicable reason that has nothing to do half price beer…)
Bedroom extras:
- TV (TV license is a must if you bring one to watch live TV)
- Laptop and lap-tray (stops your legs burning, thank us later)
- DVDs (great for group nights
) - Books
- Games console (obviously)
- Speakers
- Bedside lamp
Remember, these extras really are extra. You won’t need everything. One of my flat mates in first year came wandering in with a big rucksack full of clothes, a laptop and a guitar strapped to his back. He bought some cheap bedding and crockery in town. He had everything he needed for the year, so it just shows – you don’t need to bring the earth!
General stuff:
- Stationary – pens, pencils, highlighters, a ruler, stapler, hole-punch (use your judgement – if you do English, all you need is a pen; if you do art, you basically need everything)
- Notepad
- A diary (there is an opportunity to get a diary for free from the University, but you might want your own special one, that’s what Paperchase is for – right?!)
- Phone/gadget chargers
- A suitable bag (make sure it’s strong – books are heavier than you think!)
- A water bottle
- Plastic wallets and folders (must-haves for keeping coursework together)
- USB/Portable hard drive – depending on your course, a USB will be fine. But if you work on more demanding programs with bigger file sizes (such as Media Production or Graphics), you may want to consider a portable hard-drive. Allow me to mention here that if you don’t already have one, get yourself a Dropbox account. This is online storage that allows you to put files into a folder on your computer and then sync them to the internet. There’s a phone app too. This is definitely a must-have, because it’ll keep your work safe – we all know how temperamental technology can be!
- ID – make sure you have some sort of personal identification, be it a passport or driving license
- NHS medical card
- National Insurance number (It’s best to keep this hidden somewhere, and only get it out when you need it!)
DON’T FORGET! Certain course specific items are provided by the University – for some that might be a laptop or art supplies, and for others it might be materials or lab equipment! Please check our No Hidden Extras and see what you can get.
Happy shopping!
– Alex and Karis 
