10 Dorm Room and College “Life Hacks” for College Students

Amanda Greene

If you are not yet familiar with the saying “life hacks” you should look them up for many aspects in life, as the real meaning is basically a short cut or easy way to do something. This article features tips and tricks known as life hacks for college students. Most students and their families start preparing for college ahead of time, but some of these things about life on campus, you just cannot prepare for and you just have to learn as you go. One of the great things about the internet is that people love to write about their experiences and you can use that to your benefit when you start college and need to learn about life on your own. Many of these college dorm and college life tips we found from Reddit. Do not forget to ask other students, alumni, and professors for additional tips to make your time at college easier.

1.   Social Media Connections are Important.  Before you even start school, search for other students that already attend the college and that will be starting to attend with you on all of your social media channels. Reach out to them and make friends. Ask for tips and advice, they will, no doubt, be happy to share with you. This will also give you some connections to make once on campus so that you will not feel so alone in your new setting.

2.   Visit Professors during Office Hours. When you start classes and get your syllabus and agenda, it will also have each professor’s office hours. Most colleges insist on professors keeping office hours and they are often just there hoping someone will show up. They will appreciate you showing up and you will be rewarded for it with knowledge. Do not be afraid to ask questions about the subject and specific lessons that you are working on that week or month. Ask what you should study for the test and if there are any key points that you should concentrate on while studying. Getting to know your professors can never hurt, and they will help you along the way, they can tell you what classes to choose next and also which professors are the best for you too.

3.  Ask to Help with Research Projects. Once you have chosen a major, one of the best ways to help you get ahead in that field and boost up your resume for grad school or your career is to work on research projects. Look into what professors in your major are doing research and ask them if you can assist. In many cases, this would not be a lot of extra work and whatever you learn will help you with your studies and your grades anyhow. These things look great on resumes and getting to know your professors will also make it easier to get letters of recommendation from them.

4.  Dorm Room Comfort. Making the transition to dorm room living is one of the biggest changes for a college student to get acclimated to. Besides being a much smaller living space, dorm residents often do not have control over things like their roommate, bathroom situation, and the climate control. Many of the posted life hacks had to do with manipulating the temperature of the air neat the thermostat in order to trick the thermostat into reading that it is warmer or cooler so that it will turn on and heat or cool the room for you.  Some students suggested putting a warm washcloth over the thermostat to trick it into thinking it is warmer in the room. If the room is not warm enough, then aiming a fan at the thermostat will convince it that the room is cooler and then the heat will turn on for you.

5.  Choose Your Friends Wisely. There is a great deal of advice from both students and professors about choosing your friends and study partners wisely. Choosing smart friends that have great study habits will rub off on you and therefore you will get those some great study habits. The opposite happens if you choose friends that are not as dedicated to their grades.

6.  Join Clubs, Organizations, and Sororities or Fraternities. The reason that all of these campus groups have been around for so long is because they really do help students get through college, find jobs, and make friends. One of the other benefits of being active in different things in school is that they often have parties and dinners, so it makes meal time free with company.

7.  Do Not Let Technology Fails do You In. If you need to print a paper or an assignment, make sure that you have foolproof ways of doing this and several backup plans. If possible, do not wait until the last minute to print out your work, instead print ahead of time or ask your professor if they will accept a digital copy of your work via email or on a jump drive. The worst is to have completed your work and then find out that a system wide outage on campus or a lack of toner or ink is preventing you from printing out your paper.

8.  Do Not Stop Applying for Scholarships and Grants. Most students stop the applications process once classes have started and school is in session. However, there are many grants and scholarships that are available during all times of the year and some are specifically not for freshmen.

9.  Find applications to help you study more efficiently. There are so many different applications out there available now and many of them are geared specifically towards students. Some can help you site sources on papers, some help with organizations, and some apps help keep all of the websites and images that you save in neat files.

10. Find the Best Bathroom on Campus. Oddly enough, this was one of the most talked about college life hacks. For students that live on campus, finding a clean and private bathroom is one of the things that they treasure the most. Investigate right when you arrive on campus, or even look online ahead of time to see if a graduating student bequeathed their knowledge online.

Bio: Amanda Greene is author and Brand Manager at Residence Hall Linens. She enjoys sharing college and dorm life tips and ideas.