Dorm move-out season is tough because it coincides with finals and the melancholy that comes with leaving your friends and newfound freedom behind. Plus, you probably weren’t the picture of cleanliness all year, so you’ve got plenty of junk to dig through, sort, toss, and pack. Here are a few tips to make it all go a little smoother.
Where to get free packing boxes
Before you start packing anything, you need boxes—and brand new boxes are actually pretty expensive. For a pack of 10 standard-sized ones, you might be looking at $70, which is absolutely insulting when you think of how many of them you’ve tossed over the past year.
Instead, go around to local businesses—ideally ones where you’ve built a relationship with the employees or are employed yourself—and ask if you can have the old boxes they’re getting ready to toss out. Even if they’ve already broken them down and flattened them out, for the cost of a simple roll of packing tape, you can make them usable again. Liquor stores and office supply stores, in particular, are great spots to score the sturdiest of boxes.
Other than that, be smart with the storage you already have. Pack items into your suitcases, backpacks, and purses, for example.
Start preparing to move before finals
You need to start packing before you start studying. Try following this schedule:
Two weeks before move-out: Sit down with your roommate(s) and go through all the shared spaces to identify whose items are whose. Cookware, hair products, and winter gear are the kinds of things that might mingle together in drawers or closets, and it’s best to separate them all before anyone is too busy studying to notice if their favorite coffee mug got snatched by accident. A week and a half before move-out: Pack non-essentials. Think of your outerwear, clothes you don’t plan to wear in the next week and a half, shoes, kitchen supplies—pack whatever you don’t need immediately before you start studying so only the basics are left for crunch time. If you plan to ship your stuff home, do it now.During finals week: Take study breaks and make sure a few of them are dedicated to packing. On one break, tackle the bathroom. On another, clear out your desk.Consider the best storage
Boxing and shipping (or driving) all your stuff home is a pain, but it’s a double pain if you have to bring it all back again in the fall. Look into local storage options: Some storage companies offer student discounts or run specials for summer-only storing.
U-Haul has a program called Collegeboxes, for instance, which will pick up your boxes from your dorm, store them, and bring them back to you in the fall. Collegeboxes also offers shipping services if you do decide you want to send your things home. Each 24” x 16” x 18” box you store is just $13 per month, which could save you some headaches when you’re trying to bring your possessions back and forth twice a year.
