7 Things Worth Investing In Your Freshman Year Of College - Jacob Kenneally (2024)

• Jacob Kenneally
• April 6, 2019

• April 6, 2019
• College

It’s almost that time of year again – college dorm room shopping season(Ahhh, so bittersweet)! Sure it’s fun to plan out the ideal dorm room with all the cool stuff, but when you finally get to the store, you’ll realize pretty quickly how expensive all that stuff really is. Even the basic stuff… Like am I really about to spend $30 on a cover for my mattress??

It’s not always obvious on which items you should splurge on, and which ones you can just buy the generic version of. Fortunately, you can find quality store-brand versions of most things on your list (like laundry bins, extension cords, desk lamps, index cards) at places like Target, which is where I bought the majority of my dorm and school supplies.

There are however, a few things that you should really invest in, with the intention of them lasting all four years of college. You’ll save money in the long run by not replacing these items every year and be happy knowing that you’re using something you really love! Depending on your major or any other activities you get involved with, you might need to add to this list – but these are the things I splurged on and will be using for the rest of my time at college.

A Sturdy, Comfortable Backpack

Lugging around textbooks, notebooks, an Ipad, and a laptop is not a fun task. It’ll be even worse if you don’t have a good, sturdy backpack with comfortable straps and plenty of padding. I love the Kenneth Cole Reaction backpacks because they have tons of room, are made out of a really tough material, and have plenty of padding so I don’t have to worry about dropping my backpack with my laptop in it. I use their Expandable Laptop Backpack but they are all of super high quality.

Comfortable Shoes

Comfortable shoes and a comfortable backpack go hand in hand when it comes to back pain. Trust me, school is overwhelming as it is…don’t add back pain to your plate. While you’re in college, you’re going to be doing a lot of walking, and crocs or sandals with zero support are not going to cut it. There’s a lot of options out there, but I like to wear my Nike’s, which are super stylish, lightweight, and comfy.

A Laptop

Laptops are basically a necessity in college. Almost everything is online now so my laptop is like my hub for everything school related. Whether you’re taking notes during a lecture, meeting your teammates at the library to work on a group project, or doing homework in your dorm, having a laptop will be a huge convenience and make things so much easier!

Depending on your major, you’ll probably need a laptop with certain specifications. For Computer Science or Engineering students, this is especially important – your computer needs to be able to handle heavy coding and modeling. Although I love the apple laptops, I decided to go with a Dell XPS 15 because windows is compatible with much more programming and engineering softwares than a mac. However, if you’re not an engineering major, a Macbook Pro or Macbook Air seems to be the laptop of choice at a college campus. In general, just make sure that your laptop has a good amount of memory (8-16 GB), a screen size bigger than 10 inches, a decent processor (like i5, i7, etc) and isn’t so heavy that you dread having to slug it all around campus.

A Reusable Water Bottle

Walking to class all day is exhausting, and if your classes are back to back or in a 4-5 block of the day, you’re going to want a water bottle to make sure you’re staying hydrated. Aside from being environmentally friendly, reusable water bottles are actually a huge money saver and definitely worth the investment. If I didn’t switch to my Klean Kanteen bottle, I’d probably be broke because those $2 plastic water bottles quickly add up. What I love about the Klean Kanteen is that its insulated, it doesn’t chip/scratch when I drop it, and is safe for people and the planet!

Another maybe even better option is the Sport Berkey Portable Water Filter. This bottle is reusable, and purifies and filters the water it’s filled with. So I can fill this bottle up in the sink or from a water fountain and be confident that it doesn’t contain fluoride or other harmful chemicals!

Notebooks

Notebooks are the backbone to my college academics. I use them to take notes, study for tests, write my to-do lists, plan out my days, memorize terms, everything. Knowing that they’d be shoved down in my backpack for most of the day, I knew I needed high quality notebooks that wouldn’t easily rip. That’s why I always use Five Star Notebooks because the spirals never get messed up and they are extremely durable. I have a notebook for every class and a 5-subject notebook for homework, to-do lists, and other life organizational needs.

A Business Casual and Business Professional Outfit

You never know when you are going to need to get all dressed up for an interview, internship fair, or important dinner, so to avoid freaking out on the day of, you should have something all ready to go. Just have one outfit that you’re confident in. For me, it’s black pants, a dress shirt, a suit jacket, and a colorful tie.

Water Filter

To avoid the fluoride and other crap that water fountains and tap water are full of, I invested in a Berkey water filter to make sure I’m not putting any of those harmful chemicals in my body. The Travel Size Berkey filter is what I use for my dorm. It’s pretty expensive, but for my health, it’s absolutely worth it.

If you’re interested in going paleo, I wrote a tutorial that will explain everything and help you get started right now. In college? I’ve got a super detailed guide on how to maintain your diet and find the resources you need to stay healthy ! Have any questions about anything? I’m happy to help!

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