What NOT to pack for university
When moving to university for the first time, it’s natural to think that you will need to bring EVERYTHING you own, including the kitchen sink. But the truth is, you won’t need everything, and you simply won’t have room for all of it.
So, here’s 5 things that you most definitely won’t need for university so that you can keep your luggage a bit lighter, and stop you or your parents from wasting unnecessary time and money buying and moving these items in.
University is very different to what you’ve been used to at school. More or less, everything is online, and therefore there’s no need to bring endless files, notebooks and pens. A pencil case, notebook and a laptop will be more than enough when you move in. After a few lectures, if you do need more items, you can easily pop to the shop and get exactly what you need.
Similarly, you won’t need to bring any papers or folders of your schoolwork with you either. Seeing as you’re studying the same subject, you might think it would be very useful, but this hardly is the case. Leave it at home, and if for some reason your schoolwork comes in handy, ask your parents to take a picture, post it, or make it an excuse to go home for the weekend!
Another thing is reading lists. You don’t need to bring or buy all the books before coming to university. All the content you need can either be found online, or you can borrow them from the Hugh Owen Library. And if none of them are in there, Aberystwyth is unique as it’s on the doorstep of the National Library of Wales, which will most definitely have anything you need upon request.
As we’re talking about academic stuff – don’t worry about a printer either. You’ll have access to printers in the library as well, and you can add money to your Aber Card online easily at any time of day!
You know that outfit that you haven’t worn once in the past two years but are considering bringing it ‘just in case’? Leave it. You will have limited wardrobe space in university, with just a single wardrobe to fit everything. University is not a fashion show – when your hungover or tired on a Thursday morning and dragging yourself to a 9am lecture – you’ll be thinking more about comfort than anything else.
Another tip is not packing your summer clothes. You’ll have enough chance across the year to go home and get them when you really need them – but for September – pack those winter clothes, because the wind is no joke here in winter!
- An excessive amount of kitchen items
If you have a mug collection, or if your grandma, aunty and brother all got you a mug for university – don’t bother bringing them all. 2 will be more than enough, as they will only gather dust.
If you think you need all the fancy kitchen gadgets you can get – an onion dicer, a rice cooker, a toastie maker – you don’t. Leave the luxury items because in a shared kitchen, things will get used and dirty, or you may even suffer from a kitchen theft. Get a little bit more creative – a fork does the same job as a potato masher with a little bit more love!
Your halls will include both items anyway, so you don’t need to bother bringing your own. But you’ll soon realise that you won’t care about your wrinkly trousers. You’ll get a little bit more creative by using your straighteners or by hanging your clothes in the bathroom when you shower so the steam does it for you!
These might sound rogue as a pair, seeing as one is your décor and the other is something that keeps your door open. But the reality for both is, they’re fire hazards! You won’t be allowed candles at all seeing as they pose a fire risk, and therefore you’re much better off buying a good bunch of battery powered fairy lights and an air freshener to get the same effect. The doorstop is also a fire hazard as most doors in university accommodation are fire doors, and keeping your door open for a prolonged period might set off an annoying alarm. So, don’t bother with the doorstop and just go to the kitchen, or down to the lounges or out to events to meet people instead.
With university packing it’s best to have a less is more mentality. You can always buy new things when you arrive if there’s anything major missing, or you can pop into the Big Sale on the first weekend of freshers to grab a bargain!