Moving into a dorm or a rental apartment is a real quest with elements of stress: a new campus, unfamiliar people, someone else's room, and roommates you've never met. So that you don't end up without the things you actually need — or blow through your savings before the semester even starts — it helps to approach the whole affair with a clear list and a sober sense of what to bring, what to leave behind, and where to put the rest.
What to Take With You: The Short List
Students often make the same mistake — they pack too much. Take only what you genuinely need for the first week or two. Everything else can be shipped later or bought on the spot once you see what the room already has.
Clothing and Shoes
Two or three sets of everyday clothes for classes, one or two outfits for going out, a pair of house slippers, flip-flops for the shared shower, and workout gear if you plan to use the campus gym. Underwear and socks with enough stock for a full week. Chicago weather swings hard — layers matter more than volume, especially if you're moving in August and staying through January.
Hygiene, Personal Care, First-Aid Kit
Soap or body wash, shampoo, a towel (medium and small), toothpaste, toothbrush, floss, deodorant, a razor. A small first-aid kit: any prescription medications you take regularly, bandages, pain relievers, antiseptic. Contact lens supplies if applicable. Keep it compact — drugstores near UIC, DePaul, and Northwestern are easy to reach on foot, so you can restock without hauling a pharmacy across state lines.
Tech and Gadgets
Laptop, phone, chargers, headphones, a power strip with at least five outlets — dorm rooms in Evanston and Chicago almost never have enough sockets. A desk lamp. A flash drive or external hard drive. A portable battery pack is useful for long days on campus. Printers, hair dryers, irons — these are things to consider buying locally or sharing with a roommate rather than lugging from home.
- Power strip or extension cord. Outlet count in older dorms at UIC and U of I can be as low as two per wall — a five-outlet strip solves it.
- Shower flip-flops. Shared bathrooms in residence halls are cleaned on a schedule, not on demand.
- Ear plugs and a sleep mask. Roommate schedules rarely align, and hallway noise peaks around midnight.
- A folding drying rack. Laundry machines in dorm basements are shared and often occupied, so air-drying a few items saves quarters and time.
Kitchen Supplies — Start Small
A mug, a medium-sized pot and a frying pan, two deep plates, a set of utensils (fork, spoons, a couple of knives), a cutting board, food storage containers with lids. That is enough for the first month. If you're moving into a rental apartment near campus in Champaign or Chicago's West Side, the kitchen will probably have cabinets and maybe even a few pots left by the previous tenant — inspect before you buy.
A kettle is the one appliance worth owning from day one. Everything else — toaster, rice cooker, blender — can wait until you understand the kitchen situation and what your roommates already have.
Bedding and Room Supplies
Not every residence hall issues bedding, so bring at least one full set — fitted sheet, flat sheet, pillowcase. A second set is worth having so you can wash without sleeping on a bare mattress. A blanket or comforter suited to your temperature preference. Pillows are bulky; if you're flying in, buy one near campus and save the luggage space.
For cleaning: a small pack of rags or microfiber cloths, a sponge, dish soap, laundry detergent (pods are easiest to carry). Hangers — a dozen is usually enough to start. Skip the broom; most dorms have shared cleaning supplies, and a handheld dustpan-and-brush combo takes less space.
How to Pack Without Spending a Fortune
Packing materials are one of those expenses that balloon if you don't pay attention. The first thing to do is pick up cardboard boxes in two sizes — medium for heavy, dense items like books and dishes, large for clothes and bedding. Three-layer corrugated cardboard holds up under load and doesn't warp.
Free and Cheap Boxes
Grocery stores and big-box retailers often have clean used boxes sitting in the back. Boxes from household-chemical shipments and appliance deliveries tend to be the sturdiest. Ask at the customer service desk — employees usually just toss them. Plastic bags are not a substitute; they tear, offer no structure, and make stacking in a vehicle impossible.
Wrap Dishes in What You Already Own
Glasses, mugs, and fragile items get wrapped in packing paper or bubble wrap — but towels and T-shirts work just as well and save on materials. Pack dishes tightly so nothing rattles inside the box. Fill empty gaps with wadded-up newspaper or clothing. Plates stand on edge better than they stack flat, with paper between each one. Anything truly fragile — a ceramic vase, a picture frame — goes in bubble wrap secured with tape.
| Packing method | Best for | Budget impact |
|---|---|---|
| Clothes as cushioning | Mugs, glasses, small electronics | No extra cost |
| Medium corrugated boxes | Books, pantry items, toiletries | Free from stores or ~$1–2 each |
| Large boxes or garbage bags | Bedding, pillows, soft goods | Under $5 total |
| Stretch wrap (roll) | Bundling utensils, sealing drawers | $8–12 per roll, reusable |
Keep each box under 30 pounds — realistically, closer to 20 — so one person can carry it up a stairwell without help. Dorm elevators at DePaul and Northwestern get jammed on move-in day, and walking up four flights with a 40-pound box is a bad way to start the semester.
Label every box. Write the room it came from, what category of items is inside, and whether it contains anything fragile. Color-coded tape or markers speed things up on the other end: one color for kitchen, another for bedroom, a third for study supplies.
Getting Your Stuff to Campus
If your belongings fit in a car, that's the cheapest route — gas and tolls only. For students relocating from elsewhere in Illinois, a sedan or small SUV usually handles a dorm-load if you pack smart: suitcases on the bottom, boxes middle, loose bags on top.
When a car isn't an option — flying in from out of state, or you simply own too much — a few alternatives exist. Shipping boxes via a ground carrier is often cheaper than checking extra luggage on a flight. A small cargo van rental can run less than you'd expect for a one-way trip within the state, especially on a weekday. Split the cost with another student headed the same direction and it drops further. For a move across town, hiring short-distance movers is another option.
- Arrive early in the assigned window. Hallways and elevators are emptiest in the first hour; by mid-morning, everything backs up.
- Bring a hand truck or folding cart. Even a cheap one saves trips between the parking lot and your room — especially at high-rises near UIC's campus.
- Unload the car first, unpack later. Parking spots near dorms disappear fast; get everything inside, move the car, then sort at your own pace.
Storage Between Semesters
At the end of the spring semester, a question comes up that catches many first-year students off guard: where do you put everything when the dorm closes for summer? Hauling it all home and back again in August costs time and money. Keeping a rental apartment just to store your stuff through June and July means paying rent on an empty room.
A practical solution is a small self-storage unit. These come in sizes starting from roughly 25 square feet — enough for a few boxes, a desk chair, bedding, and a mini-fridge. Renting one with a friend or two roommates cuts the cost per person down to very little for a two- or three-month stretch.
What to Store, What to Take Home
Seasonal clothing you won't wear over the summer, textbooks from finished courses, small furniture, sports equipment — these are all things that make sense to leave in a storage unit near campus rather than ship across the country. Documents, electronics, and anything irreplaceable should travel with you.
Before packing for storage, sort everything into three categories: taking with me, storing, and getting rid of. Donate or sell what you won't use again — the campus bookstore buys back textbooks, and student Facebook groups are full of end-of-year furniture listings. Whatever goes into storage should be packed in sealed plastic bins or sturdy boxes, labeled, and kept off the floor on a pallet or shelf if the unit doesn't have climate control.
Preparing Items for Storage
Wash all clothing and bedding before packing — anything stored dirty will develop a smell. Wipe down electronics and wrap them in soft cloth. Don't store food, aerosol cans, or anything with a strong chemical odor. A couple of moisture-absorbing packets inside each bin help prevent mildew, which matters in a Chicago summer.
- Perishable food of any kind. Even sealed dry goods attract pests over a few months.
- Flammable or corrosive chemicals. Cleaning sprays, lighter fluid, paint — leave these out.
- Important documents or irreplaceable items. Passports, financial paperwork, jewelry — carry these with you.
Budgeting for the Move Itself
Students tend to underestimate what a move actually costs once you add up the small charges. Packing materials, gas or shipping, maybe a meal on the road, a few things you forgot and had to buy near campus. It adds up to a number that surprises people.
The simplest way to keep it under control is to make a list of expenses before you start packing. Write down what you already own (boxes from a recent Amazon order, suitcases, tape), what you need to buy, and what you can borrow. Students at Northwestern or U of I who coordinate with roommates often find that one person brings the kitchen supplies, another handles cleaning products, and the overlap drops to near zero.
Avoid buying anything expensive for a space you'll occupy for only eight or nine months. Furnished rentals and dorm rooms already have the big pieces — a bed frame, a desk, a dresser. If you need a shelf or a lamp, check thrift stores around Chicago's apartment districts or browse campus resale boards before ordering new.
The Checkout Side of Things
Dorm checkout timelines in the Chicago area are tight — most residence halls at UIC and DePaul give you 24 to 48 hours after your last final exam to clear out. That means your packing plan for the end of the year needs to start a week before finals, not after them. Label boxes as you fill them so you're not sorting at the last minute with a deadline hanging over you.
If you're ending a lease on a rented apartment, the calendar is a little more forgiving, but you still need to coordinate: schedule a walk-through with the landlord, return keys, document the condition of the unit so your security deposit comes back. Moving out a day or two early avoids the last-day scramble when trash bins overflow and the stairwell is full of other tenants' discarded furniture.
We help students get settled without the stress of figuring out logistics alone.
Get a Free Moving QuoteA Few Final Practical Notes
Start collecting boxes two to three weeks before your move date. Fold and store them flat until packing day. Use stretch wrap to bundle loose utensils, secure dresser drawers, and bind together items that don't fit neatly in a box — a roll costs under ten dollars and saves more time than it seems.
If you're driving into Chicago for the first time, check street-parking rules near your building before move-in day. Some blocks around UIC and DePaul require residential permits or have time-limited meters. A parking ticket on day one is not the welcome anyone wants.
And the single best piece of advice from students who've done this before: show up, unload the car, and unpack later. Get everything inside first. The sorting, the shelf-arranging, the decorating — all of that can happen once the vehicle is empty and moved out of the loading zone. The move is the stressful part. Setting up the room is the reward.