Just moved my freshman son in to a big 10 school. He didn't want decor - went very minimalist. Better for packing as well as not crowding their room or throwing stuff out at the end of the year. The most he let me do was print off a few large photos of a recent trip and he put them on the wall in plastic frames - I think it at least made it look a little less prison like but my observation was that boys do nothing beyond function (fans, rugs, storage, etc) and girls make it like a mini apartment. Don't push it if he is a boy, he might actually appear out of place.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Imagine a navy blue comforter, a poster on the wall, a huge gaming computer, and a tv. That’s a boy’s college dorm.

You just described my son's dorm room. Well, he has no TV and two posters
(The Smiths and New Order. His GenX parents are so proud)

Awesome posters. I’d be proud too.

Ditto 😊

get him a "college" poster

Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone from OP. I really was mostly in the mindset of organizational items - hooks to hang wet towels, rubbermaid storage “shelves”, bins etc. Son thinks all will fit into whatever storage is provided by the college in the room. If he wants a poster or flag I’m in favor but I’m more focused on not wanting his towel to become moldy nor his side of room to be a mess because he has nowhere to put extra sheets, towels, etc. To be clear he has a small wardrobe and only 2 sets of sheets/towels so maybe I am overthinking, but I remember putting my bed on blocks and then shoving rubbermaid storage bins under, plus using egg crates for extra items.

Get bed risers -- four plastic blocks you use to put under the feet of the bed. Beats our old cinderblock ways (I remember doing that too).

But check if your son's bed needs risers, though. We had some and then discovered the beds in DC's dorm were made so you could slide them up and extend the legs to make the bed higher, which is great! Plenty of room for under-bed storage. In fact the bed could be raised high enough that the room's three-drawer dresser could fit beneath the bed, along with a couple of large plastic lidded storage bins.

There may be very little room for any shelves or bins that don't fit under the bed or squeeze right next to it. Also you'll need to see what his desk is like (if the college provides one, most do). Some have enough drawer space for the usual desk items but I've seen a few that did not. As for shelves -- he may not be permitted to put up shelves on the walls so check on that first.

Anonymous wrote:Hooks are a necessity not a decoration. The rooms I saw at my son's school, led light stripes, maybe, but less often, one poster or such on the wall. Plastic set of drawers for storage. Solid colored rug. A big pillow to lean against the wall behind bed, like to act as a headboard.

This, above. 3M brand "Command" hooks only -- some colleges will charge students at the end of the year if the students put screws or nails into walls, OP, so 3M Command hooks are the only way to go. They can be removed leaving zero holes or tape marks. I know from experience they really do work well. Get some large ones suitable for hanging up a winter coat if he's in a place where he'll use a coat. Some for towels -- towels need to hang up to dry thoroughly, which I hope he knows! Get some extra hooks in varying sizes. Hooks aren't "decoration," they're essentials like PP notes.

He might want a rug because some dorm room floors are cold in the mornings/in winter. HE should pick it out--tell him why it's a basic item rather than "decor." (That word might make him balk!) He also needs a nonslip rug pad for underneath the rug or it will slip around and end up balled up against the wall....Moot point of course if there is carpeting but I haven't' seen many dorms with carpets!

PP is right about a large pillow or maybe a backrest but suggest that, then let him order or figure it out.

Interesting thread to me to read all the posts saying their kids put up college flags or other flags. Very cool! Like the old days with college pennants everywhere. My DD is at a SLAC and puts up tons of posters from events on campus and podcasts and shows she loves, but so do her male friends, so not all guys are minimalists who don't think about putting anything on their walls. Her male RA had an amazing room with white lights strung around the ceiling and psychedelic posters (like '60s rock band posters) on the walls, but that was his groovy style!

But beyond the basics that really are about storage (like hooks) or comfort (like a rug or backrest) your DS will figure out what he wants on his own. Congrats on his starting freshman year, OP. My DD is starting senior year and I'm a tad nostalgic for those very early days of her college life! Enjoy being a parent of a college student, OP -- it really has been fun and so very educational for DH and me as well as DD!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Imagine a navy blue comforter, a poster on the wall, a huge gaming computer, and a tv. That’s a boy’s college dorm.

You just described my son's dorm room. Well, he has no TV and two posters
(The Smiths and New Order. His GenX parents are so proud)

Awesome posters. I’d be proud too.

+1

Minimum amounts of clothing (2 weeks worth). Two hoodies only. We'll see. Maybe he will need more? Did not take PJs.

Asked for -
- carpet
- 1 plant that can survive in low light
- better fan because no AC. We got a vornado.
- a room upright lamp

Some colleges ban upright halogen lamps because they can be fire hazards.

Your college-age boy owns pajamas?

Carpet is a good idea, as is the fan.

I'm surprised that long strips of LED lights haven't been mentioned here. Lots of teens seem to like them. I would have thought that they would be popular at colleges.

Thanks everyone from OP. I really was mostly in the mindset of organizational items - hooks to hang wet towels, rubbermaid storage “shelves”, bins etc. Son thinks all will fit into whatever storage is provided by the college in the room. If he wants a poster or flag I’m in favor but I’m more focused on not wanting his towel to become moldy nor his side of room to be a mess because he has nowhere to put extra sheets, towels, etc. To be clear he has a small wardrobe and only 2 sets of sheets/towels so maybe I am overthinking, but I remember putting my bed on blocks and then shoving rubbermaid storage bins under, plus using egg crates for extra items.

Anonymous wrote:Decorating college dorm rooms is a huge thing? Can someone post links? I'm so curious. I'm just picturing my cinderblock dorm room at JMU with the prisoner-made furniture. Not sure how anyone can jazz that up.

Ha, my kid is in the nicest, largest, newest freshman JMU dorms. They still look like a prison cell occupied by a long-term inmate with some privileges that bribes the guards. The low ceilings in the older dorms really make it bad.

No posters or wall hanging.
No to extra pillows or shams
No to curtains.
No to fairy lights
No to lots of storage bins under the bed
No to bed skirt
No to risers
No to the real plates and bowls I sent. He is keeping the cups.
NO to laundry supplies - tide pods and softener - because his roommate got some. ( Seriously? Is he going to be a moocher? )
No to table lamp since the computer screen is already lit
No to cleaning supplies except - clorox wipes, windex, bounty. (I will also get him a stickvac and a swiffer)

Minimum amounts of clothing (2 weeks worth). Two hoodies only. We'll see. Maybe he will need more? Did not take PJs.

Asked for -
- carpet
- 1 plant that can survive in low light
- better fan because no AC. We got a vornado.
- a room upright lamp

Anonymous wrote:Decorating college dorm rooms is a huge thing? Can someone post links? I'm so curious. I'm just picturing my cinderblock dorm room at JMU with the prisoner-made furniture. Not sure how anyone can jazz that up.

Rugs, curtains (even if the windows come with blinds,) lighting, bedding with lots of pillows, a headboard, etc. can really change a room. Just google "JMU dorms" and I'm sure you'll find tons of photos. And videos--for some reason college students now LOVE to give Youtube video tours of their dorm room.

Follow his lead. If he says he wants nothing now he wants nothing, that's fine. My dd brought only the basics her first year, no decorations whatsoever. She added a couple of small things over the course of the year to bedroom and suite common area. This year she had a few things she wanted to pick up in advance so we did that and she then went shopping when she got to school as well. It doesn't need to be a big deal. For a lot of kids it is is fine to keep things very simple.

For girls, hanging "fairy" (like christmas) lights are a big thing.

I often thought that could be very romantic with the right boy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS wants no decoration, shelves, hooks etc for his room. I think when we arrive he will be surprised to see many others put such things in their rooms. I’d love to prescout photos of typical dorm rooms so we can rush off to bed bath and beyond or target and pick them up befre apouse and I head back. All the images I keep finding are of elaborately decorated girls rooms. I just want to make sure son has places to hang his wet towel, put extra clean towels, add a little personality. Thanks for any help.

Adding personality is on him. Command hooks and an underbed box for extra storage. That’s enough of a start.

Those Pintrisr photos are not typical of what I see online. Storage container for under mid-lofted bed and one flag for the wall is typical (university of flag) it hone state perhaps.

+1 And my son didn't use half the stuff I sent,

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Imagine a navy blue comforter, a poster on the wall, a huge gaming computer, and a tv. That’s a boy’s college dorm.

Kids bring gaming consoles and tv’s? really?

My DD has an 85” tv in her apartment. She games and watches The Bachelorette on it. She also lives in an apartment. Last year in her apartment style dorm, she had a 55” tv.

Oh. I am getting the picture. Sounds like a real go getter.