This is it! You are finally a college freshman, a young adult and are able to do your own thing. Going to college is the ultimate pinnacle of doing your own thing with no one to tell you where to go and how to be (most of the time).
Heading off to college for the first time is exciting, but there are a lot of supplies you are going to need for your firs time away from home.
If you do an online search to see what you need as a college freshman, the lists and advice out there may convince you that you need to spend a small fortunate just to outfit your dorm room. But the truth is, you don’t need all of that. If you are a college freshman, here are a few things you don’t need!
1. A Television
You might think I’m crazy for saying you don’t need a television, but hear me out. Most likely you’ll have your laptop or tablet with you when you head off to college, so you don’t need another piece of expensive equipment laying around to get stolen or broken. Plus your roommate or new best friend will have one, so you can always watch theirs.
2. A Brand New Comforter Set
If you are going to live in the dorm, you will most likely have to get new sheets as the beds in most dorms are an extra-long twin, which is not a standard size for most homes. But that’s it. You don’t need to go buy a whole new sham and comforter just because it’s cute. You can still use you the one you have from home. Besides, you’ll be too busy studying to make your bed up everyday anyway.
3. Season Tickets to Sporting Events
If you are going to a large university with a great sports team, the athletic department will try to sell you season tickets to football, basketball, and every other sport too. But if you aren’t a die-hard sports fanatic, don’t buy season tickets.
Even if you want to go to a game or two, it’s cheaper to buy a ticket from a friend or ask around to see who has an extra they won’t be using on any given weekend. A lot of universities also have free admission to students for certain sporting events that are a little less popular, such as volleyball, baseball, and maybe even women’s basketball. I knew several people in college who spent over $300 a year on season tickets and never once went to a game. That’s $300 that can be put toward tuition, books, or food.
4. Dorm Appliances
If you are living in a dorm, you will have a roommate. Talk with them to see what they getting so you don’t have duplicates of appliances. This will save you space and money. If you are offered a full meal plan for the cafeteria, take advantage of it and eat there. You won’t eat actual meals in your dorm as much as you may think.
5. Brand New Text Books
Books are expensive, plus they have a low sell-back rate, and some classes don’t even use them. Depending on your major and what classes you are taking, you may be able to get away with not buying books at all. Ask around or email your instructors to see which classes actually use the books they require or recommend.
When you do have to buy a book, don’t buy a new one. Search online and in the campus book store for used books first. You may even be able to borrow books from a friend who took the class last semester or last year. Renting text books is also an option. You usually don’t get money back on rentals, but it’s still cheaper than buying books, plus you’ll be able to avoid the hassle of trying to re-sell them.
6. School Supplies
I’m not saying college freshman won’t need any school supplies, but you won’t need twelve folders, ten pencils, crayons, and two glue sticks. (Unless you are majoring in elementary education. Then you might need them).
Depending on how you take notes during class, you might just take your laptop and type notes, or use one notebook with different sections for all of your classes. The bare necessities are about the only things you’ll need as a college freshman: a three-ring binder or a couple of spiral notebooks, a pencil, a pen, and a highlighter.
7. A Credit Card
This one is cautionary. Depending upon your spending habits and money knowledge, having a credit card could only add to your debt during college. If you do decide to open or take a credit card, get one that has a low interest rate and credit limit.
It might be too late now, but if you can, talk to alumni, do a campus visit, or talk to a current student to see what they use and don’t use. College is an expensive investment and the less you spend upfront on things you don’t really need, the less you’ll have added to your student debt load when you graduate.
Did you take anything unnecessary when you were a college freshman?
When DS went down to the US for his first year, they ended up with lots of duplicates (4 kids in a tiny dorm). No contact info with each other prior so we couldn’t preplan. The best reality check was the cost of textbooks. DS was in shock and learned quickly to get used AND share the cost with his roommate, who was taking the same class.
It’s been a long time, but I remember my roommate and I were assigned to each other and they sent us each other’s contact info, so we were able to touch base and try to avoid buying duplicate items.
I did that too when I went to college a few years ago. That definitely helps save money!
Credit card I guess. I survived college without it, so I guess every freshman and college student do not need it.
I remember I wasn’t allowed to bring a television to my apartment by my mom. She’s so strict, but I was glad it helped me focus on study and save, though it was hard back then as the Internet was not that improved.
Text books are the worst! We had a pretty good system going with a small class size, everyone shared digital copies on an online drive. You can sometimes find pdf copies available for a fee, if everyone pitches in they’re much easier to share. Or create your own through the sacrifice of time, take one out of the library(most school libraries have the text books you need) and scan it so you have a mediocre quality digital copy. Worked for plenty in the past!