Nine Things You Shouldn’t Buy for College

Written by Lauren Smyth

College packing lists can seem long even if you only include the essentials: a pencil, a pen, a notebook, a backpack, a blanket, a place to store pizza, dishes on which to eat pizza, drinks to have with pizza, and pizza. Use this list to make sure you aren’t over-packing, or packing the wrong things.

1. Kitchen appliances (besides a personal refrigerator). There are two reasons why this is first on the list. Reason #1: They’re banned. That should be sufficient, but just in case, here’s reason #2: Kitchens at Hillsdale are generally equipped with kitchen appliances you’ll need and use often. Microwaves, ice machines, ovens, and more are available in the dorm common areas, and—in my experience, anyway—you’ll rarely find yourself waiting in line to use them. Save yourself money, space, and legal trouble by leaving yours at home.

Instead, try:

  • A personal refrigerator
  • A small slow cooker

2. An alarm clock. Alarm clocks aren’t really alarm clocks: they’re sleep interrupters with a cranky sense of humor. They make an absurd amount of noise, light up the room when it’s supposed to be dark, are redundant if you have a phone, and get out of whack if the power goes off in the middle of the night. Do your dorm hall a favor: Don’t bring an alarm clock to college, and don’t wake up your friends with an ill-conceived radio alarm at oh-dark-thirty. 

Instead, try:

  • A cell phone
  • A watch

3. A desktop computer. They eat floorspace and produce heat. You’ll probably need a laptop for work done outside the library or your dorm room, so you’ll find yourself constantly transferring files between computers if you have more than one.

Instead, try:

  • A high-spec laptop
  • A gaming console

4. Humidifiers. Unless you’re willing to clean your humidifier often in a small sink and routinely invest in distilled water, it’s not a good idea to bring a humidifier to your dorm room. Know what’s even worse? Humidifiers can set off the dorm smoke alarms, resulting in a chilly outdoor excursion and a visit from the local fire department.

Instead, try:

  • An evaporative humidifier
  • A long, hot shower (with your roommate’s permission)

5. Lots of books. If there’s one thing you’ll get in college, it’s very little time to read anything besides classroom materials. You also won’t have a lot of shelf space or willingness to carry heavy books in your backpack. Plus, if you’re a fast reader, you’ll run through your stash and then have to carry home a mound of books you don’t really need to keep at college.

Instead, try:

  • An e-reader
  • MelCat interlibrary loans

6. Too many pillows. Where are you going to put them when you actually have to sleep in your bed? If your answer was “the floor,” pause and consider where your feet have been. If the cafeteria, crowded hallways, and carpeted classrooms don’t scare you, how about public bathrooms used by hundreds of students? Any pillows that start off on your bed had better stay there, unless you’re willing to snuggle up to a selection of college’s hardiest germs.

Instead, try:

  • A body pillow
  • A backrest pillow

7. Wireless printers. If you want everyone in your dorm to hate you forever, here’s how you do it: Wait until the night before a major paper is due, and then hook up your wireless printer. Boom! You’ve just knocked out the whole dorm’s WiFi, probably for a long time. The mysteries of Wireless Fidelity must be respected. Do not meddle with what you do not understand, and do not connect your wireless printer to the campus internet.

Instead, try:

  • Using free library printers
  • A wired printer that does not, and cannot, connect to the Internet

8. Trash cans. These come with the room. There are also hallway trash cans and dumpsters outside for larger trash, like empty Amazon boxes that will surely come your way.

Instead, try:

  • Throwing away food trash outside your room
  • Making less trash by using washable dishes

9. Headphones without noise canceling. Psst: You’re allowed and even encouraged to talk in the college library—on the top floor, at least. This also happens to be where most of the tables are. You may also find yourself wanting to study in the student union, the cafeteria, a coffee shop, or somewhere else with a lot of background noise. Do yourself a favor and, if you’re going to invest in headphones or Bluetooth earbuds, skip the ones without active noise canceling.

Instead, try:

  • Airpods Pro or Samsung Galaxy Buds
  • Active noise canceling headphones

Now, you’re probably wondering: What do I buy? Don’t worry – we have a list for that, too!

Lauren Smyth, ’25, is an economics major and journalism minor. Outside of starting arguments in philosophy class, she enjoys curling up on a bench outdoors (sun, rain, or snow) to write novels or articles for her blog, www.laurensmythbooks.com.

 

 

Published in August 2023