Top 15 Gift Ideas for Students Moving into College Dorms in 2021
July 11, 2021
As students begin to go back to school and move back onto college campuses, you might wonder what essentials they might need. Choosing the best gifts and home or dorm warming presents for someone entering college is not easy. Especially with the way college trends seem to change every year.
Luckily, we can help you! In this guide, we’ll talk about the best gift ideas for students moving to college campuses in 2021. Each gift on this list is useful and will be something that your student actually use.
1. Backpack
High-quality backpacks are essential to college life. Students will need to carry around textbooks, laptops, notebooks, and other essentials as they walk through campus. And with a sturdy and well-designed backpack, your student can organize and access everything they need for school.
2. College Care Package
College care packages are another great gift choice for students. You can never go wrong with food and snacks. Especially during move-in, this can be the perfect treat to munch on after your student organizes their new dorm or apartment.
3. Noise Cancelling Headphones
It’s no secret, but college campuses can be noisy, especially if you aren’t at the library. Noise-canceling headphones are the ideal way to combat this problem. Students can study and do work in any location at any time with the right pair of noise-canceling headphones. You can check out an affordable pair of headphones here.
4. Electric Kettle
Students in dorms might not have access to a kitchen or stovetop. With an electric kettle, though, they can safely boil water and make simple dishes in their room. Even if your student lives off-campus, this is a convenient and highly useful housewarming present!
5. Long Charging Cable
It’s easy to lose or misplace charging cables, especially while you are running around campus. This is why an extra-long charging cable can work as a great gift for college students. Not only can these be used as backup chargers but the length of these cords can also be used on outlets that are further away.
6. Fleece Blanket
There is nothing better than lounging with a warm fleece blanket after a long day of school. Students will love this fluffy fleece blanket, especially during colder months of the year.
You can check out great blanket options here at this link.
7. Customized Starbucks Cups
These customized Starbucks cups are a great present for any coffee lover! Your student can sip on coffee and other drinks on the go. College students are always on the move and in need of a little bit of caffeine. So, you can’t go wrong with this gift. These customized cups are also stylized with the name and color of your student’s university.
8. Mini Keurig
Dorm rooms and campus apartments aren’t always spacious. So, it’s best to save space with smaller essentials for your student. The Mini Keurig is a great option for students. They can make a quick cup of coffee before they head off to their morning class.
9. Sound Machine
Public spaces on campus are not the only place that can be loud. Door rooms and even off-campus residential areas can be filled with noise. Students need to get good uninterrupted sleep to do well in college. A sound machine can help with this. It emits nature sounds, white noise, and soothing tones to help students fall asleep faster.
10. Customized Scented Candles
Everyone loves the smell of a good scented candle. And, if your student wants to show their school pride and warm up their room with a nice candle, this next gift option is a clear winner. These customized scented candles from Etsy come in two different scents and are decorated with the name and logo of your student’s university.
11. Customized College Dorm Laundry Bag
Laundry bags are another essential for young adults who are going off to college this year. You might be tempted to get them a laundry basket, but laundry bags are much more durable and easy to carry around.
These customized laundry bags from Etsy have easy-to-shoulder handles and have plenty of room for all your student’s dirty clothes. These bags are also customized with the logo, name, and colors of your student’s university! You can find a link to this product here.
12. Battery Pack
On busy campuses, it might be difficult for your student to find an open outlet. However, a battery pack can solve this issue. Battery packs can be used to charge laptops, phones, and any other electronics without an outlet. In other words, this is a very handy gift for students.
13. Ramen Cooker
Instant ramen is ubiquitous with the college lifestyle. At one point or another, your student will probably be cooking ramen in their dorm or apartment, either to save money or time. So, this ramen cooker is an ideal gift choice for students.
The rapid ramen cooker is safe to microwave and is the perfect shape to place instant ramen noodles in. This cooker is also BPA-free and dishwasher safe.
14. Instant Pot
Instant Pot is another great cooking option for students in dorms. All they need to do to cook healthy and delicious food is plug in the pot and put in their ingredients. No stove is necessary and this machine can slow cook, steam food, and act as a pressure cooker. The size of the Instant Pot is also fairly compact.
15. Light Therapy Lamp
Finally, for the last gift on this list, we will talk about light therapy lamps. As the seasons change and the hours of light decrease each year, your student can be affected in a number of ways. Less light can mean less energy and a change in emotions. Some students even end up getting SAD, also known as seasonal affective disorder.
To help your student succeed, we recommend getting them a light therapy lamp. Light therapy lamps are clinically proven to improve mood and help with SAD.