[gracie88]

any tips for my first college move in day?

[imuhhater]

^- I second that. When you move in your stuff, does that mean that's the first day you start living in your dorm as well? I'm really confused.

[jaked]

I don't know if all schools are the same, but you start living in your dorm after you move-in.

Tips? Bring lots of water. Making multiple trips to the car and carrying heavy boxes when it's hot outside isn't exactly fun.

[yeuthuong]

yep. the day you move in is also the day you start living there. at least that's how it was for us. there's going to be a lot of people moving in the same day as you, so i would try to pack just the necessary things first. and if you're planning to go home a lot or live just a few hours away, bring the other stuff you'd like to bring later. oh and try to stay calm and patience bc it can get pretty chaotic =D other than that, move in day is a good time to make friends so try meeting new people

[hungrycollegeboy]

It's busy as hell.

You'll probably end up napping after you move in because you're so tired.

It doesn't help because the heat is a killer.

Usually dorms don't have AC so you're probably gonna be all sticky and sweaty.

You'll have no problem sleeping the first night because it's really tiring.

Just to make sure that you're tired enough, advisors usually have activities planned for you.

I really hate move in/move out days.

ONE GOOD THING.

You get to meet new people. That's it.

[Brusky]

yeah, go really early or really late because there are going to be a bajillion people waiting on those elevators another up to getting there early is being able to choose which bed you want! hop on it!

as others have said, it's pretty chaotic with people running around everywhere. if you can, bring a couple extra sets of hands to help you out to make it go faster and more smoothly.

after you've moved all your stuff in, don't worry too much about unpacking it all and making yourself at home. instead, go out and meet all your new floormates and have some fun socializing. it's the first day and there's a lot of positive energy out there and you guys can all vent about how chaotic it all was over dinner

[dehoot]

For my school, we don't HAVE to start living in the dorms the day we move-in. That's of course if you live close-by enough to drive the school from home. If you live out of state or it takes 4+ hours to drive there, then obviously you have to stay. I'd expect that there would be a specific way to move-in, depending on your school. For example, at my school we're assigned a move-in time and date. When we come, we have to do loops around the parking lot and get a special number on our car before we head to the actual dorm to put stuff in. Once we get there we have to check-in at the main office, get our key, etc., then head upstairs with the help of student volunteers and/or staff. We're not allowed to go upstairs unless we have luggage meaning, you have to take the stairs all the way down so, it's best to do it in the minimal amount of trips possible. Once I move-in I clean up the place with my roommate and we head out to do a meet&greet with other people on our floor or wait till our other roommates come.

It'll be hardest if you have just LOADS of stuff, so make sure you're all prepared with as little stuff as possible. Meaning focus on necessities rather than your accessories. If you live close enough to home you can always go back and get stuff, but if you're from out of state you probably can't help having loads of crap.

mmm... I suggest bringing stuff to put on your walls and door. The dorm rooms are so bare if you don't. T_T;

[buymeapackofcrows]

elevators

I stayed in dorms for a month [summer]. Our room was on 3rd floor....It was fun but kinda hated it when we had to go up and down through stairs, no elevators. I tried bringing in a couch, no one would help me so I left it at home. hehe. The first day was packed with people, make sure you learn a few peoples names. It'll come in handy later on. Plus, you get to meet many new people from a different genre background. But, overall, dont forget to have fun.

[akira53]

horrible
Always keep your doors locked.
Try to go early unless you have a specific check in time. I had to check in at 11am and I spent an hour waiting in a line of cars just to get to the parking lot. It was probably at least another 45 minutes until I actually got my stuff to my room.
Moving out is so much easier than moving in lol.

[josebiwasabi]

tell your parents to go away.

parents go way overboard and overprotective. they will try and micromanage everything that day.

seriously.

[Melitus]

Dorming was awkard for me, our floormates did not introduce or greet us. Throughout the semester, I have no clue who was my floormates are.
The first day is best to introduce yourself to your roomies and layout the rules. I moved in very early and i lived in the first floor it wasn't that bad.

[RawrRawr]

tell your parents to go away.

parents go way overboard and overprotective. they will try and micromanage everything that day.

seriously.

&lots of sunscreen.


Oh, bring those disposable wipes. Wipe down EVERYTHING before you put stuff on it. Windows, EVERYTHING...
Trust me. I did this and the layer of filth was like YUCKKK.

[mongstaness]

lol..ok so im scheduled to move in on sept 20th around 6-7pm...wat time should be there to move in?? btw i'll be attendin UCLA...

[gracie88]

^ wow... u move in soo late!! my classes start next monday...
anyway, u should in at ur assigned time, which u obviously already have

[xx_swit_c_xx]

Mm well for my school it's optional. Once you officially get your room key, sign the papers, and move in and unpack you are now able to STAY till the first day of school. OR if your home is closeby to the sky some people may go home now and then to grab more stuff they forgot or to eat their last home cooked meal for awhile =)

What happens in Move In day....

Your dad, mom, older friend, brother, sister.. whoever should go with you to watch your car as you unpack.
Then you'll haul all your crap up those stairs/elevators if you're lucky =)
Your parents may want to take pictures with you in your new unpacked, bare ugly room...
Then parents/family leave... while you can start to unpack.. greet hallmates...
After you've unpacked you can go down the hall and introduce yourself (they will be your friends for the first 1-2 weeks)
Your RA (residential advisor of the floor) will probably have a "get to know eachother" meeting where you kinda get to know other people's names... let the cliques "somewhat" form lol.
Then if you're outgoing you may ask those same people to go around and look at the campus or grab food.
If you are more quiet and unsocializing because you're nervouse/anxious some people usually go on their laptops once they figure the internet out =) and then do that for a few hours, alone....
If you can, keep your door open.. if you're gonna be a hermit during the first week of school and keep the door closed then it's not much of an experience. I mean, you can still close it like at night and when you're busy and stuff.... but let it be free cuz people still knock/enter to say "hi my name is...."
And then... perhaps dinner/eat..... mm play some poker if you're a guy (or girl^^)...
Then you can try and call up other friends you know who are there.. and hang out... or preread for classes...


... I think that's about it... oh yeah and ROOMMATES. make sure you go over a list (no literally, a list) of what you DONT LIKE vs what is okay... nothing worse than not doing that and then a week later she's got a guy over sleeping above you. not a good idea hahaha... just go over simple rules like bathroom (if you have individual room bathrooms..) etc.. food.. what can be used of the other persons or not.

[BAN`CHAN]

i'm actually really nervous about move in day..
i'm not exactly outgoing and i'm really shy and can't start a conversation myself T_T
scared i'm gonna have to eat by myself on the first day lol..

[jenuinelytrue]

First move in day! Don't be nervous...you'll be fine!

For my move in day, they had some upperclassmen helping everyone move their stuff in, so basically, I just went to the check in desk and got the key to open the door for them..xD That was nice...

Unfortunately this year, I don't have the wonderful upperclassmen helping me this year, so I am dragging to help me move in..xD

My suggestion is to move in during the evening if your school doesn't have assigned times...a lot of people try to just move in first thing in the morning or during the afternoon and it is just a long wait in the car to get a chance to park in front of your building...I noticed that everything started to clear out sometime after four...>.<

After unpacking, basically I went around to introduce myself to my floor mates and get a general idea of how some people had decorated their dorm rooms because some people had moved in early because of sports and such...

After that we went to the nearest target because I realized I forgot to get some things and needed more things for my dorm ^-^;;

Then, my family and I just went out for lunch/dinner before they left. Also, a great time to hit them up for some last minute cash before they leave. xD

You can either unpack when you get there or later. I actually unpacked when I got there because I had my family to help me with everything because I was just exhausted after I got back from dinner.

My room mates had disappeared somewhere so I didn't get to meet them until later that night.

[xx_melody]

Move in day can be VERY VERY stressful, but it doesn't have to be. (Even though it is for me everytime, haha)

Make sure you bring people to help you. Your parents probably will be there, but if you think they're going to be a distraction, maybe consider leaving one at home. LOL, I know how cruel that just sounded but last year, both my parents came and we ended up arguing about little things...and when they both left, it was kinda sad.

+Try to go early. Meet people later.
+If you're planning to go home that weekend, you don't have to bring EVERYTHING, like your whole wardrobe or something (Lol, that's what I did, and I ended up with 2 luggages). Just come back home and get it the next week.
+Get ready to run up and down as you get stuff from your car. You will most likely be taking multiple trips to get all your stuff, so dress comfortably!
+Be friendly! First impressions are important imo. Mingle with the people in your hall, with your roommates or something. Leave your door open to show that you're free to chat!!

And BANCHAN don't worry! I'm kinda shy too, but I still had my roommates to hang out with!

Good luck class of '12! Try to enjoy yourself this year, definitely =)

[e00z]

teehee the new freshman are so cute...all nervous about the first day of college awwwww

it's a pretty cool experience. it might seem overwhelming at first since for a lot of people, it'll be their first time away from home. i suggest you just be super social, which freshmen usually are for about the first 2-3 weeks. meet everyone in your dorm hall and even greet people randomly in the elevators. don't lock yourself up in your room. you'll probably have some floor group gathering hosted by the RA so that's an easy way to meet people.

the actual moving in is pretty simple. it takes a few hours and is a bit tiring. it's also super crowded since everyone is moving in at the same time. being right on time for your move in spot is probably not too strict. i agree with that comment about parents above. the moms usually want to do everything for you in their own way. hehehe

[imuhhater]

xx_melody, GREAT TIPS! Its easy for me to go back home from school, so I'll definitely try not to overpack and pack only the things that I definitely need to bring, thanks!