University Checklist 2021

Remember there's no need to go out and buy every item listed here. Often universities provide some of these things, so check what's on offer before you start shopping.

You can often team up with flat mates on things like kettles, toasters, pots and pans. Whatever happens, there's likely to be a shops selling all these things when you get there, so if you do forget something vital it shouldn't be too difficult to replace.

Documents

  • Passport photos
  • Passport or driving licence
  • NHS number
  • National Insurance number
  • TV Licence
  • CV and references
  • Discount travel cards
  • Bank account details
  • Address book and email contacts list
  • Local map
  • What's on guide
  • Old textbooks and notes
  • List of phone numbers
  • Support notification form
  • Diary or calendar
  • Doctor and dentist details
  • Other university documents
  • Exam certificates
  • Room insurance

Kitchen

A lot of the kitchen stuff will depend if you're going self catering or not.

  • Corkscrew
  • Bottle opener
  • Mugs
  • Glasses
  • Wine glasses
  • Shot glasses
  • Kettle
  • Knives, forks and spoons
  • Plates
  • Bowls (for cereal, soup, icecream, etc)
  • One-person casserole dish
  • Small frying or omelette pan
  • 1 small, 1 large saucepan with lids
  • Egg cup
  • Tin opener
  • Scissors
  • Chopping knife
  • Chopping board - An extra chopping board if you are cutting meat: this way you avoid food poisoning!!!
  • Vegetable peeler
  • Cheese grater - (Ikea do a very good one that has the grater as a lid so all the cheese goes into a box/compartment neatly and you can leave it in there to store aswell)
  • Breadknife
  • Wooden spoon
  • Spatula - good for a washing up implement.
  • Potato Masher (only if you are a fan of mash tho!)
  • Easy to follow recipe book
  • Store cupboard ingredients - coffee, tea, milk, sugar, eggs, margarine, cooking oil, salt and pepper - and let's not forget pasta
  • Coffee whitener - for when you run out of milk
  • Sandwich bags - good for lots of stuff you open and need to contain. e.g. sugar / teabags and things
  • Plastic bowl or box with lid
  • Microwaveable bowl
  • Cling film
  • Tin foil
  • Sieve
  • Tea towels
  • Oven gloves
  • Washing-up stuff - Washing-up liquid / Dishcloth / Scrubbing brush
  • Tray - For carrying food to your room and to stop you making a mess if you're not eating at a table
  • Chopsticks

Studying

  • Desk lamp (Halogen)
  • Book chair - saves a lot of neck strain if you are making notes out of a big book]
  • Notice board - for timetables, numbers, etc. Some halls may already provide one.
  • Message board with erasable marker eg. a mini white board or one of those magnetic sand ones that you can wipe
  • Diary/planner - to keep track of assignments
  • Dictionary and thesaurus
  • A pad of lined paper - for making notes/doing drafts etc
  • Ream of printing paper
  • A4 folders
  • Pens, pencils, paper, files, highlighters
  • Scissors
  • Sticky tape
  • Stapler, hole punch
  • Sticky labels
  • Post-it notes
  • Paper clips
  • White Tac - so it doesn't mark the walls
  • Stamps and envelopes

Outdoor

  • Sports gear
  • Bike
  • Raincoat
  • Umbrella

Healthcare

  • Multivitamins
  • Painkillers
  • Condoms/pill
  • Basic first aid kit - plasters, antiseptic wipes, bandages
  • Paracetamol
  • Some cold/flu remedy incase you are struck down by freshers' flu
  • Pro-Plus
  • Anti-allergy pills - eg. Piriton anti-allergy tablets
  • A cold/hot pack

Bathroom

  • Bath mat
  • Bath and hand towels (+ possibly a flanel)
  • Basket for shower supplies
  • Wash bag
  • Toilet roll
  • Box of tissues
  • Toothbrush and toothpaste
  • Soap - sqeasy (bottle) soap is probably better. If you're sharing bathrooms then it's easier to transport and wont slip onto the floor etc.
  • Showergel
  • Shampoo/Conditioner
  • Nail clippers
  • Deodorant
  • Cologne
  • Hair gel
  • Hair spray
  • Hairbrush
  • Comb
  • Razor
  • Shaving cream/gel
  • Lip balm

Housekeeping

  • Febreeze - To stop clothes / fabric getting to smelly
  • Laundry bag - So your dirty clothes don't end up on the floor. And for dragging to the laundry or dumping on your parents to wash for you!
  • Clothes horse - Save money on dryers by drying your clothes in your room
  • Coat hangers - you may not get any in wardrobes
  • Dustpan and brush - for cleaning up the odd mess, though most unis should provide this
  • Duster
  • Kitchen towel
  • Cif cleaning products
  • Washing powder/liquid/tablets - if the washing powder dispenser isn't working
  • Door wedge - an open door in freshers week is much more friendly

Electrical

  • Alarm clock (maybe 2 in two different locations in your roomto make sure lectures are at least attempted, even if you carry on sleeping there!)
    Calculator - for sorting out finances
  • Computer and/or laptop - saves on queues at deadline time
  • Computer mouse for laptop - easier to use than a trackpad
  • CDR's (CDRW's cheaper in long run) - for backing up work
  • USB "pen drive" - carrying projects etc between uni, internet cafe, friends comp, etc. quickly, easily and RELIABLY!
  • Printer - printing could take up to six hours on uni computers
  • Network cable - to access the internet from the socket in your room
  • Mini fridge - for beer and other items you don't want in the communal fridge
  • Bedside lamp
  • Mobile and charger
  • Answering machine
  • CD player/Hi-fi system - though better (certainly space wise) just to bring speakers and use your computer
  • TV - but license fee will be costly. There will doubtless be a communal TV you can watch. Also worth considering a TV-DVD/-VCR combi or seperate VCR/DVD players
  • Camera - to take pictures of room and friends (to send home/put on website ... everything else people do with photos)
  • Headphones - so you don't disturb others when you play music loud. You can get 'infra-red' ones that aren't too expensive and allow you to walk around while still listening to the music.
  • Batteries - rechargeable (save money)
  • Multi plug adaptor/extension lead - to give you more than the normal 2/4 sockets

Clothing

  • Dressing gown
  • Slippers
  • T-shirts
  • Jumpers
  • Trousers
  • Underwear
  • Socks
  • Shoes/trainers
  • Flip flops - for wearing in showers / communal wash areas
  • Swimwear
  • Ball gowns/eveningwear - for the Freshers' Ball.
  • Shirt and tie for any smart-casual events

Leisure

  • Board games - a couple, will make a good fun free evening (not sure about your phrasing! - its not mine)
  • Pack of card
  • Ball - rugby ball/football for friendly matches/made up games
  • Frisbee - again for the occassional game (rugby style)

Style

  • Posters - though theses are often available during freshers week - (you might need things to cover bad decoration)
  • Photos of family and friends
  • Wall hanging - more homely than posters
  • Rugs - to hide the mangy carpet
  • Fairylights/disco ball/police light/lava lamp
  • Cushions/beanbags - for friends to sit down in your room
  • A throw - to make your bed into a sofa for friends to sit on
  • Pot plants
  • Teddy bear/stuffed toys
  • Blankets - for when it gets cold and you want to snuggle up

Bedding

  • Sheets
  • Duvet and duvet covers
  • Pillows & pillow cases - did you know the average used pillow is 75% dead flesh?
  • Mattress cover - goes between the mattress and the bottom sheet
  • Hot water bottle
  • Inflatable mattress and pump - for your mates when they visit
  • Sleeping bag - for when friends come to stay/when you go to stay

Miscellaneous

  • Alcohol - to make new friends with
  • Sweets or biscuits - to distribute to flatmates
  • Extra storage - cardboard or plastic boxes for things which wont fit anywhere else
  • Large suitcase - to put things in when going home for the weekend
  • A spare lightbulb
  • Torch - for power cuts and looking under desks/chairs/beds
  • Pen knife
  • Loose change - for washing / vending machines
  • Earplugs - to cut out noise you don't want to hear
  • Bookends - probably unecessary; just use something else (eg pot of pasta, sugar etc)
  • Poster hangers - if you're not allowed Blu-/White?-Tac on the walls
  • Safety pins
  • Small sewing kit - just incase you need to do a quik fix on a rip or tear (like the ones you get in hotels)
  • Small toolkit
  • Matches
  • Fan
  • Clock

Female specific items

  • Hair Ties/clips
  • Make up (eye shadow, mascara, lip stick/gloss, eyeliner, foundation, etc)
  • Jewellery Box
  • Jewellery
  • Moisturiser
  • Baby Oil
  • Nail Varnish
  • Hair removing cream
  • Hair dryer/straightners
  • Tampons/sanitary towels

Male specific items

  • Shaving brush

Don't bother with

  • Iron
  • Toaster
  • Sandwich maker
  • Nice kitchen stuff - it will get used then left on the side to rot/rust
  • Candles - serious fire hazard

And all things that everyone gets - so if you're in flats rather than halls, you may want to wait and see if you really need to splash out when you could just borrow your flatmate's.

Further information

For more tips and advice on preparing for university, please see: