Each year, dorm rooms are occupied by “aspiring” interior designers equipped with insight from Pinterest boards, the latest trends, and, hopefully, all of the essentials to make their space a desirable place to live in. One of the most influential aspects of a university experience is how “at-home” students feel in their dorm room. Success in academics and extracurriculars can depend heavily on how students curate the space they live in. This is all a personal experience; therefore each dorm room is unique to its inhabitants. From determining that having a PC setup deems a room decorated to the most Pinterest-worthy cottage-core room complete with an espresso machine and an essential oil diffuser, Andrews University has had it all. In order to determine what this year's dorm room must-haves are, the student body was solicited to share what makes them feel comfortable in the dorm.
“For me, it’s my electric kettle. Bought it from H-Mart, and fits neatly in a little box that cannot be more than 1 cubic foot. Boils water in about 5 minutes. Good for making tea or coffee for late-night studies, or boiling water for ramen. I think it’s a very not exciting answer, but I think it’s the small quality-of-life improving gizmos that make dorm life more bearable, you know?”
Yoel Kim (senior, physics and math studies)
“I have a few favorite items! One of them is my hot water maker. That thing really comes in handy when making drinks or even just for noodles or other food. You can get it at Amazon or Target! I also really love my tote bags. Those are such easy breezy wonderful things that come in handy for carrying things around. Something really fun to have in a dorm is a Lego set! Yeah, plates and forks are important, but a Lego set is both fun and a wonderful decoration!” Lexi Dunham (junior, psychology)
“I have two main must-haves. Number one: an electric kettle that I use to heat water for tea and Argentinian mate! My second is a painting of a lion I got in Kenya the last time I visited my family there.” Chris Ngugi (junior, psychology and Spanish)
“...Is it too basic to say my $10 coffee maker from Walmart? Because truthfully she’s my most prized possession. I love my coffee maker, I use it every morning. I’ve actually rebought it three times because the little coffee pot keeps breaking and it’s just cheaper to buy a whole new one. She’s very useful and since she’s so small and it’s five cups, it fits perfectly. Especially since Andrews doesn’t like selling any caffeine.” Lucille Borges (junior, speech pathology)
“Cleaning supplies and Clorox wipes.” Kevin Alba (junior, agribusiness)
“Must haves are lights. This can be any LEDS, fairy lights, or sunset lamps. I don’t care, just as long as there are some sort of lights in your room that are not the overhead light.
I bought a sunset lamp and fairy lights off Amazon.” Reagan Westerman (sophomore, psychology)
“I would say must-haves would include a fan or white noise machine from Amazon, a small low maintenance plant from somewhere like Home Depot, and a small vacuum from Walmart” Danny Frederick (junior, computer science)
“A hanging closet organizer (Amazon) saves so much room in my closet, especially since it’s small and I don’t like using hangers. Also, a water filter pitcher (Amazon) because I drink a lot of water and the water sucks in the dorm.” Nahzoni Haycock (junior, biophysics)
“My must-haves are pictures of my loved ones, my weighted blanket (Amazon), and hanging closet storage (Amazon).” Bianca Loss (junior, elementary education)
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.