Iâve been involved in multiple college move-in days; for myself and for my family/friends. During every single move, I learned more and more ways to be completely prepared for the big day. Here are some ways that you can prepare the night before:
Some might say that preparing for move-in day all the way up to the night before is overdoing it, but if you want to move into your dorm as fast and as easily as possible, then you can never be too prepared.
If Youâre Not at Home:
If youâre driving to campus from somewhere other than home, such as a hotel, a friendâs house, etc., then hereâs what you should do:
1. Go Over the Move-In Day Schedule Again
Chances are that your college has a general schedule for move-in day. This could be found in an email sent directly to the incoming students, it could be attached to a larger âwelcome weekendâ schedule, or it could be found on the schoolâs website. Itâs good to remind yourself of the general flow of the day and campus rules so that when you wake up, youâre as prepared as can be. Thisâll help save you time.
2. Remind Yourself of the Parking Spots
Itâs good to remind yourself of where youâre going to park as soon as you arrive on campus so that youâre not stuck trying to remember as soon as you arrive. Additionally, the approved parking area for move-in day can suddenly change, and you donât want to be confused when youâre suddenly told to park somewhere else. There was a sudden parking change during my graduation and if I didnât look at the schedule the night before, I wouldnât have realized until it was too late.
3. Review the Game Plan With Everyone
To make sure that the move-in day game plan is fresh in everyoneâs minds, you should remind them of what you plan to do and when you plan to do it. Tell them the meet-up time if youâre not all arriving together. Tell them where they can and canât park. Remind them of whoâs carrying the heavy stuff and whoâs carrying the lighter things. Do what you have to do to make sure everyoneâs on the same page before the big day.
4. Pack a Small Water/Snack Bag
Moving is hard work. To make sure that youâre not only mentally, but physically prepared, it’s best to have both water and snacks on stand-by. This is especially true if the weatherâs going to be hot during this hectic day. Itâs also very courteous if you pack water and snacks for the family and/or friends that are helping you move in. This way, everyone can get refueled to make this day as fast and easy as possible.
5. Pack Everything Before You Go to Bed
Pack everything that youâre not going to need in order to get ready in the morning in your suitcases. Thisâll save you the extra time of packing stuff up in the morning. This way, as soon as you wake up, youâre pretty much ready to get the ball rolling with no unnecessary holdups. You could also place all of your luggage by the door if itâll help you start your day faster.
6. Put Together a Playlist
Getting work done, especially manual labor on a hot day, can feel especially long and drawn out when you do it in silence. Do you listen to music when you exercise? Doesn’t it help motivate you, or at the very least, distract you from how hard you’re actually working? That’s the effect we’re going for here. It helps to have your favorite songs playing in the background and make the entire ordeal a little more fun. Of course, you don’t have to put the playlist together yourself. There are plenty of pre-made playlists on Spotify that are perfect for moments like these.
7. Go to Bed Early (With Enough Time to Eat Breakfast)
Going to bed early is very important. Not only do you want to get up early to beat the crowd, you want to wake up refreshed and with enough energy to help you get the job done. Getting enough sleep is only going to give you half the energy you need though. To get the rest, make sure to fuel up with breakfast. This means going to bed early enough to fit this meal in without taking away from the rest of your day.
If You Are at Home:
If you plan to drive to campus directly from home, then hereâs what you should do:
1. Make Sure Your Family, Friends, etc. are Still Going to Help You
Other peopleâs plans can suddenly change and they wonât think to let you know about it. Especially if they didn’t already travel with you to campus to help. You donât want all of your diligent planning to go to waste and you definitely donât want to be stuck moving in by yourself. Talk to, text and/or call everyone that agreed to help you to make sure you still have the amount of hands that you need to get the job done. If you checked in with your team already and most of them bailed, then you may want to hire a college moving service. Hereâs a list of moving services:
2. Do Steps 1 to 7 From Above
Steps 1 to 7 from above are helpful, even if you’re leaving straight from home to go to campus. They apply to everyone who wants their college move-in day to go as smoothly as possible. It’s true that it doing all of these could feel like you’re overdoing it; however, skipping any of those steps will just leave you less prepared than you could have been. If you can get through the busy day faster, then why not try to, right?
Related Questions:
What to do before moving into a dorm?
Before moving into a dorm room, you need to know if you are okay with living on campus, the pros and cons of living in a dorm, if you want a roommate, the type of room you want to stay in, the floor you want to live on, how to move into a dorm and what dorm life is going to be like.
What do you do on college move-in day?
During college move-in day, you need to get to campus early, park in the designated move-in area, inspect your empty dorm room, clean the room, unpack your stuff and buy everything that youâre missing.
