Operation Anti-Clutter: How to Clean Up Your Dorm Room

Dorm rooms can easily get out of control. But having a messy one will only make you feel more overwhelmed. Keep your room clean (for longer than a week) with these tips.

Congratulations—you’re more than halfway through the school year, which has consisted of lots of studying, friends, laundry, and finals. A quick round of applause for you! We’re approaching spring, which brings with it a whole new set of problems…the first of which lies in something that may be in desperate need of cleaning. Here’s a clue: you’re probably in it right now. If you said your dorm room, you’d be correct.

Second semester is a chance for you to either continue your good work or to redeem yourself. How can you begin to do that when your room looks like a tornado ran through it? I admit, after finals dorm rooms can get a little messy. But having a messy room will only make you more overwhelmed for a new round of classes and exams. Don’t worry—I’ll help you keep your room clean (for longer than a week).

First off: sweep or vacuum your floor

This is something that should be done as soon as you come back from a break. I know from experience that dorm room floors can get pretty dirty if they haven’t been cleaned since move-in day. If you’re still not convinced, imagine your floor is like your teeth. If you don’t brush your teeth for six months, they’re not going to look or smell the best. Even a quick sweep of the floor can make your room look a lot neater, and maybe you’ll find that missing sock from first semester. Long story short: clean your floor.

Get rid of the stuff you aren’t using a lot

Whether it’s an extra storage bin, books from last semester, or even that old microwave you brought from home: if you aren’t using it, you need to get rid of it. If you didn’t use it during first semester, then you won’t use it now. I’m not saying to throw this stuff away—give it to someone in your dorm who needs it or to a local Goodwill.

If you’re like me and have endless stacks of papers all over the place, separate them into two piles. The first pile will be stuff you could possibly need in the future. This can be notes from math or chemistry that you might need at some point, fliers for tutoring hours, and anything that is somewhat related to your major. These can go into a folder and placed in a closet or an accessible drawer. That way you won’t lose anything you’ll need in the future. The second pile is for old papers, such as fliers of past events like Welcome Week Football or the Freshman Halloween Party. If the date has gone by already, there’s no reason keeping it. This also includes notes from classes that have nothing to do with your major. I doubt a Nursing student will need pottery notes any time for future schooling. You’ll be surprised at how much room you’ll have when you recycle all that paper.

Reorganize your desk

Depending on how hard you’ve been studying, your desk can range from a slight level of messiness to a full-on warzone. The key here is to focus on one area. Humans tend to focus on patterns, so if something is out of place, it will bug us. Find that thing that bugs you and start there. Throw away any small items of trash (candy wrappers, empty gum containers, etc.). If you received any cups or plastic sunglasses during first semester, move them off your desk. If you find you can’t part with something, just move it into a designated junk drawer—out of sight, out of mind. Clean out your binders by replacing old notes with clean sheets of paper. This will save you both space and money, and we college kids need all the help we can get. Rearrange items until you feel satisfied or it looks somewhat presentable. If you’re able to work at your desk without knocking anything over or looking for anything (for more than 15 minutes), then you’ve done a good job. Last step: wipe off the surface with sanitizing wipes. It’s a new semester; you don’t want to start it off with a cold.

Set a day to tidy up each week

You’ve made your mother proud by cleaning up your room; you get a small pat on the back. Now you just have to keep it this way. No need to worry—it’s easier than you think. All you have to do is figure out a day each week to tidy it up. Cleaning is just like studying: if you wait until the last minute, you’ll have a lot of work to do in a short amount of time. However, if you do it slowly over time, it won’t be as bad. Even just taking out the trash every week and putting books back in their place at the end of the day can save you hours of cleaning when mom and dad come to visit. It may not seem like much, but your future self will thank you.

De-cluttering your room can seem like a daunting task. But with these tips, you’ll be able to sit in your room and be comfortable while still getting your work done. Just be sure to make it last!

Like what you’re reading?

Join the CollegeXpress community! Create a free account and we’ll notify you about new articles, scholarship deadlines, and more.

Join Now

Tags:

About Melanie Moore

Ever since summer of my junior year, I've looked for any and all outlets about college. YouTube videos, Pinterest pins, Buzzfeed, and even college chat rooms—if it talks about college life in any way, shape, or form, I've probably seen it. That is why I am coming to CollegeXpress, to share my not-so-limited knowledge about roommates, food, and admission. I spent nearly a year and a half finding all of this information—I might as well put it to use!

 

Join our community of
over 5 million students!

CollegeXpress has everything you need to simplify your college search, get connected to schools, and find your perfect fit.

Join CollegeXpress
Mimi

Mimi

High School Class of 2022

CollegeXpress has provided me with tips that were for college students, but as a high school junior, they were still very useful. Not only that, it also gave me an idea of what to expect when it comes to going to college or already being in college. I want to say thank you to CollegeXpress, and I hope you continue the wonderful tips until I hopefully get into college and throughout my college journey.

Jenna

Jenna

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress has helped me greatly during my college search. I used their college search feature often and it helped in comparing schools I was looking at. Now that I’ve found a college the scholarship search feature is helping me find a way to find my college experience. CollegeXpress has many helpful features and resources for anyones college search, it truly is a wonderful tool for anyone entering college level!

Joseph Johnsly

Joseph Johnsly

High School Class of 2021

It's an honor for me to be writing to share a little about my experience with CollegeXpress. I've been using CollegeXpress for about a year now, and the reason why I chose it is because it provides astonishing scholarships for every student around the globe. Besides that, this organization dispenses all the information necessary to help students get to college. CollegeXpress has helped me have an easier experience with applying to colleges and choosing the best fit for myself.

Kyla McClain

Kyla McClain

High School Class of 2024

I found CollegeXpress when you partnered with Bold.org for a scholarship. I found your website, put my information in, and got connected. I only wanted to stay in North Carolina [for college] and not move far from home, but you all opened a door up for me. I started researching colleges you suggested for me. On your social media platforms, you also give really good test-taking tips that I used and suggested others to do the same. It helped me a lot on my exams, so thank you.

Sonny Harris

Sonny Harris

College Student

For the entire year before college, I spent a lot of time deeply considering what major I wanted to go into and how to fund my higher education. After a lot of research, I came across CollegeXpress, which helped me ultimately find a ton of scholarships for which I could apply—and some of which I received! If it weren’t for CollegeXpress, I may not have found those scholarships as they didn't appear on any other scholarship search forum. Additionally, I learned more about the options I had been considering for my major through CollegeXpress’s resources. In the end, I chose to major in Computer Science, as it seemed best suited to me and the careers in the field seemed enjoyable, and I've never been more excited to move into my future! Ultimately, I want to thank CollegeXpress for offering their services. I received enough financial aid in scholarships to fund my entire freshman year of college and even got some money refunded which I used to purchase a new laptop, and I bought all of the books I needed for the semester!

College Matches
X

Colleges You May Be Interested In

Meredith College

Raleigh, NC

Lynn University

Boca Raton, FL

Allegheny College

Meadville, PA