10 Things You'll Probably Forget to take to University

Staying in the same city that I went to university in means I tend to get a little bit nostalgic every time September comes around. While I don't usually have much reason to stray towards the more 'studenty' side of Manchester such as Fallowfield, Rusholme or Didsbury, a short walk down Oxford Road quite literally is a walk down memory lane.

While I get all misty eyed over £1 Jagerbombs at 5th Ave and sharing a living space with 9 other people (yeah, maybe not) I thought I'd offer a few words of advice to those starting university this year.

So you've packed up what looks like your entire room, including a few extras here and there and it's like a game of Tetris trying to fit everything into your parent's car. You've definitely thought of everything. Or have you? Here are 10 things that you've probably, most definitely, forgotten to pack.

1. A door stop. The small yet mighty key to socialising in those vital first few days. Nothing says 'social recluse' more than a closed door. Some folded over cardboard might do the job for a day, but a doorstop is a handy little tool you'll wish you had remembered.

2. Nail varnish remover. One of those things that you might have relied on your mum or sister for before, but now you'll just have to scratch off until you splash out at Boots. This one applies to the guys too, especially for that awful neon nail varnish someone gave you for the 90s themed disco and it's definitely not coming off. And if you do remember nail varnish remover, your housemates will just borrow yours all year and not bother buying their own.

3. Toilet roll. One of those living essentials that you overlooked while making sure you had enough outfits for Freshers Week. A new toilet roll no longer magically appears in the bathroom. That stuff runs out.

4. A sewing kit. Want to create a fancy dress costume on the cheap? You'll wish you had your gran's biscuit tin of lies for once.

5. A bottle opener and corkscrew. Because nobody likes bits of cork floating in their White Zinfandel after someone's been at it with a knife. You could always sieve out the bits of molested cork, if you brought a sieve...

6. Coat hangers. They're so damn hard to pack that you only brought about 5. The rest you can keep from all the cheap clothes you've yet to buy from Primark. 

7. Scissors. And then when you do buy some you need another pair of scissors to cut them out of the plastic packaging.

8. Speakers. It's probably worth investing in some decent speakers to improve the sound quality of that film you've just illegally downloaded to your laptop.

9. A printer with ink. The library will be full and all the computers will be taken when you need to print off and hand in that essay 10 minutes before the deadline.

10. Scales. For weighing ingredients, not yourself. You definitely won't want to weigh yourself after Fresher's, but you may actually want start trying some of the recipes from all those student cookbooks everyone gave you before you left.

You can of course pick all of these things up once you're at uni, but it's a lot easier and cheaper to add them to the list of 'things to buy for uni' for your parents.