Printable College Packing List: Guys
Sending your boys- oops, young men!- off to college is something else, parents. We’ve never experienced something quite like this. It’s what we planned for and trained for, but at the same time, it’s what we’re least prepared to do! While we can no longer help them navigate day-to-day life, we can do our best to help prepare our boys for their college careers. Here’s a printable college package list for guys that will get you to campus for college drop-off. Affiliate links are included in this post.
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Printable College Packing List: Guys Dorms and Apartments
Let’s face it: sometimes having boys is “easier.”
And that seems to be the case when it comes to preparing their college dorms for move-in.
Girls tend to want to decorate, guys tend to want function first- decorations come later.
We just went through this with our oldest who moved into his first college apartment and truly, it was a fairly easy process.
- furnished apartment- check!
- couple of roommates- check!
- separate rooms and bathrooms- check!
But we did find a few things we left off our college checklist for boys.
Here’s a printable college packing list for guy’s apartments and dorms that may help you plan for a better move-in.
A Guy’s College Apartment Must-Haves
If your son is moving into an apartment, check out our list of a guy’s college apartment must-haves:
- Blue IKEA Frakta Bags for move-in. You can leave things on the hangers and go from bag to closet in seconds. Bags fold up and can store under a bed until move-out
- wagon or cart for grocery hauls
- rain gear: umbrella or rain boots for walking across campus
- ice scrapper for their car if parked on the streets in colder climates
- small tool kit is a guy’s college apartment must-have!
- Brita-type water pitcher and filter
- rugs for rooms with laminate flooring
- first aid kit
- full length over the door mirror is a guy’s college apartment must-have
- hanging closet organizer
- magic space-saving hangers
- mattress topper – especially for pre-furnished apartments
- foldable chair or bean bag
- floor or desk lamp
- LED lighting (check apartment rules about using them on the walls first)
- gaming system and monitor
Dorm Room Essentials: Guys
Moving into a dorm is generally the first step to college life for boys.
We added a few things to the above guy’s college apartment must-have list to round out what you’ll need in a college packing list for guys.
- Blue IKEA Frakta Bags for move-in– trust us, they live up to the hype.
- mattress topper- the dorm room essential for boys who want to sleep comfortably!
- ottoman with inside storage that can double as a step for lofted beds
- lap desk for laptop work in bed
- soundproof earplugs for shared rooms is a dorm room essential for guys that have snoring roommates
- bedside caddy to store his phone
- bed rail for high lofted beds are important on this dorm room essentials guys list
- air freshener
- mini-fridge
- hanging closet organizer
- magic space-saving hangers
- a fan is a dorm room essential for guys: cools them down and acts as white noise
- collapsable laundry baskets for space-saving purposes
- command hooks
- foldable chair or bean bag
Unexpected Things To Bring To College
There are some things you may have left off your college packing list for guys, but that’s what we’re here for: to remind you of those unexpected things to bring to college.
These are the things we remembered to send later, and Amazon came through. But add it to your college checklist for guys now so you won’t have to panic buy later!
- trash can(s) for the room and bathroom. Don’t forget the liners (though guys probably won’t use them- you tried, Mom!)
- masks – they won’t use them unless they need them. And a need could arise. So pack a few masks for emergency quarantines
- Covid tests
- cork boards for easy decorating and note making
- over the toilet shelf (can also be used over the mini-fridge for food storage)
- plants
- flashlight
- scissors
- robe if sharing a bathroom or room
- shower shoes if sharing a bathroom
- mini lock box or small safe for important papers, passport, items
- extra long phone chargers and extension chords
- throw blanket for the guy who doesn’t want to make his bed every day
What NOT To Add To Your College Packing List: Guys
Look, we just want to keep everyone honest here.
The number one thing we decided against packing/buying for our guy’s college apartment was blackout curtains.
We know they are on a lot of college packing lists, but we know our dude and knew this would be a recipe for disaster.
If you’ve had to wake a teen boy up for school over the years, you know that a dark cave of a room is conducive to sleeping all. day. long.
So this is on our list of things NOT to add to your college checklist for guys if you want them to, you know, actually wake up for class.
Printable PDF College Packing List: Guys
Click the image to download the printable PDF College Packing List: Guys.
Or follow this link for your college packing checklist.
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Patty Holliday is the owner and creator of all things No-Guilt Universe. As a lifelong fangirl and pop culture connoisseur, she’s been creating online since 2009. You can find her work at No-Guilt Disney.com, No-Guilt Fangirl.com, No-Guilt Life, and as host of the top-rated No-Guilt Disney Podcast.