Whether you live in the dorms or in an apartment off-campus, the way you live in college will mostly be different than living at home (unless you have rich parents). This difference can be seen mostly in the kitchen and living room but not the bedroom. At times, you may share a kitchen with other people while at other times your kitchen may not be so full. Most college students don't even use the kitchen often since they may not have the time to cook or don't know how to cook. But, I noticed that college students must have a living room and a bedroom (of course). Having said that, there are some things college students just can't live without.

There are some things that could have made my college life more difficult or less colorful if I didn't have them. I call them 'The College Living Essentials' (I know long name but...oh well). I will talk about these things with regards to the different parts of the apartment/dorm. At times, I may not only talk about things but also factors that to consider when thinking about college living. This college living essentials article will provide you will all the details. Let's start with the...

The Bedroom

College students love to sleep. They do this because they usually have to make up for lack of sleep during exams or when they are trying to submit tons of papers by the deadline. For this reason, your bedroom College living essentials should include:

• A nice, comfortable bed (whether it's single or double depends on you and how much space you have)

• Appropriate size bed sheets (e.g. some beds require xl twin or twin extra long sheets

• A spacious closet (for all your party...I mean, school clothes)

• Comfortable study chair where you take naps :)

• Spacious study table (so you can have room for sleeping...I mean for your books)

• Thick and thin blankets for the different types of weather

• Warm sleeping clothes if you live in a cold area

• Poster of the man or woman of your dreams or just something nice to look at

• Calendar

• Cork board

• Locked box for your valuable things

Notice that some of the things on the list do not only relate to your bed but also to your bedroom as a whole. These things come together to make up a suitable sleeping and working environment wherein you will feel comfortable. Think of your room as a sanctuary where you will be doing your resting and/or most of your school work unless you feel more relaxed studying at the library.

The living room

Like the bedroom, making your living room as comfortable as possible is also important. This is true whether you want this to be a study area or get-together area. Most college students spend their fun times here with their friends so they make sure that they have lots of entertainment available (and this is one of the College living essentials you would need when you need to reduce some stress). If this is your case, you and your room mates can pitch in for a comfortable sofa, television set, DVD player, gaming console, blanket (during cold weather), decorations etc. These are especially attractive options if you share the same friends with your room mates.

Your living room can still have all the things that I just mentioned but still be a study area. You can do this by extending some rules to your visitor friends such as game nights only on certain nights, quiet time applies during school night etc. There may be times when you would want some company while studying. During these times, take a break after an hour and a half of studying and do something fun for 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes is up, you can go back to some serious studying. If you follow these rules, you won't feel tempted to just leave your homework behind because you are rewarding yourself every now and then.

If you decide that all the other things are just a waste of money, at least find a good deal on buying a comfortable sofa. There were many times when I came home very tired and just knocked out on our sofa. This is a great alternative if you only want to take a quick nap so you can re-charge for a productive night. If you are the type of person who can take short naps, then the living room will be a great place for you because you won't be tempted to sleep all throughout the day or night.

The kitchen

I was one of those college students who cooked full meals about twice a week since I've been cooking with my grandma since I was a kid. Most of the students who didn't know how to cook were forced learned to do so by cooking simple stuff out of necessity. This is because food is not only one of the College living essentials but also vital to your academic performance. If you live in the dorms, food is almost always available to you especially during exam time. However, once you reach your junior year and you want to keep up this lifestyle, you would have to have lots of money saved up so you can eat out. So, if you want to save some moola, here are some of the things you would need in your kitchen:

• Hot water boiler (get the electric, quick boiling one) - every college student I know has used one of these at one point or another. This gadget is usually used to boil water for coffee, ramen, instant oatmeal etc. It's great to have it in the kitchen especially if you are always on the go. You can make a quick lunch (e.g. ramen) or quick picker upper (e.g. coffee, tea) during the times when you don't have time to do other things.

• Food - quick cooking or no cook foods such as eggs, ramen (again), instant coffee, peanut butter, bread, power bars, fruits etc. The point in having these things in your pantry is to have food during the busiest times of the year. This is crucial because during exam time, most schools either close early or do not serve as much food compared to regular times of the school year. This happens for two reasons: student employees need to study and many students are too busy to even think of food (this doesn't happen to me because I love food :) but I guess it does happen)

• Basic kitchen ware - these are especially useful if you cook every once in awhile and you like creating simple meals

• Inexpensive utensils, plastic plates/bowls - If you would be sharing a house with many people, 'inexpensive' would be the magic word. I stress 'inexpensive' because most college students do not care about what they are eating their food on. In addition, plastic plates and bowls last longer because they don't break. You also don't need to worry about breaking anything when you move from one place to another (trust me, you would move at least 3 times during your college life)

• Fridge - Most apartments near college campuses come equipped with a fridge. The big question is: would you be sharing food with everybody, have a section in the fridge that yours and yours only, or a little bit of both? Discussing this with your room mates is critical because some room mates may not have a distinction between their food and yours. This is a common problem in many college dorms and apartments. If you encounter this situation, you may want to get a small fridge in your bedroom that is off limits to other people. If the problem persists, then maybe it's time find new room mates or move to a new place :)

Besides the three parts of the house/dorm, these are other College living essentials that would make your life easier:

• Cheap textbooks - You can usually find cheap textbooks at e-bay's half.com. However, if you want to compare many merchants, i-campus.com has a list of different online bookstore prices along with shipping and handling fees. If you want to buy your textbook online, you may have to buy it at about 1-2 weeks before school starts because you would need the time to wait for your textbook to arrive in the mail. One thing to remember about textbooks is that they are not always required by teachers. To make sure that you need to buy a textbook, check the textbook labels at your school bookstore during finals week. Once you look for the course and teacher information, these labels will tell you if a textbook is required or recommended.

• Ipod - Use your ipod during study time if it will make you block out outside noise and concentrate more on studying. The Ipod is also handy if you ride the school's public transportation. You can use this riding time to relax and not listen to other student's drama.

• Bike and bike locks - If you decide to go to a school where majority of college students ride a bike (like I did), then you will need these two things. Bikes are handy when you have little time in between classes. Riding a bike allows you to go from one class to another in less time compared to walking. If you decide to ride a bike, make sure you buy good bike locks because it can be easily stolen. In addition, choose a cheap, durable bike that will be useful to you but is not valuable enough for a thief to steal it.

• Book sack (or back pack) - Do I even need to say this? Most students in high school even know this one already. However, when you're in college, you would usually need your lap top with you for those last minute paper writing/editing. If you like having your lap top with you, then choose a book sack that has a compartment that protects your lap top from all the other stuff you have in it.

• First-aid kit - A lot of college students get sick, especially during exam time. I'm not sure why this happens but I think that stress is probably one of the top reasons. So, for all the common ailments that students get, here are a few suggestions for your medicine cabinet: band aid, pain/fever reliever, cold/flu and cough medicine, and allergy medicine.

• Exercise stuff - If you like to be active even during the busiest times of the school year, consider having some dumbbells, stability balls, and a few exercise videos around your place. Most colleges and universities may have a fully-equipped gym. But, for those times when you don't have the time or inclination to go there, having these around can help relieve stress and help you stick to your routine.

That is it for your College living essentials. Depending on your situation, you may need some or all of the stuff in this list. You will be sure to be prepared for all those unexpected moments if you have these around.