As first-year college students head out to make their mark on the world, dorm rooms have become a critical initial expression of their changed status, not to mention expensive, as parents with $200 tufted headboards in their Amazon carts can attest.

Long before the internet, decorating a college room for the most part meant a few posters, incidentals and bed linens. But the process is no longer that simple.

Two audiences are targeted in this new dorm industrial complex: students themselves and the parents (let’s face it…mostly moms) who see lush dorm decorating as one last crack at pleasing their children (and putting their own touches into their offsprings’ living spaces) before they face an empty nest.

Influencers on Instagram are elevating the excitement of soon-to-be dorm dwellers.

The next few weekends will see college campuses across Tennessee filled with students moving in...but are they ready? Not for class, but for making a dorm their new home?

-- Photo By Sam Simpkins | Belmont University

Add in Pinterest with its high-definition photos of glammed-out dorm rooms and TikTok with its persuasive “I’m obsessed!” content creators, students are subtly being urged to start building their shopping carts, often before they understand what they need or can have.

Universities and colleges are dealing with a large demand for on-campus housing, which has created shortages at schools across the country. The housing crisis has forced many schools to try to find inventive solutions like turning a single into a double room.

And having spent much of the past two and a-half years at home due to the pandemic, college-bound students have been marinating ideas about the kind of rooms they want.

It’s slightly fraught.

College bedding is seen in Target along with other college necessities.

-- Photo By Michelle Morrow |The Ledger

Since 2019, back-to-college spending has nearly doubled. A 2023 survey done by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics reveals families will likely spend at least $1,367 per student on back-to-college costs, a 14% increase over 2022.

Between inflation, costly electronics and basic household incidentals – including stocking the fridge – that price seems low.

Dorm Sweet Dorm

Paige Williams of Paige Williams Interior Design in Nashville, thinks parents just want their children to be comfortable – at the very least – in the way they were used to at home.

Belmont students get help moving their essentials into on-campus housing, which is facing increased demand.

-- Photo By Sam Simpkins | Belmont University

“I think it’s more of a comfort thing that parents want for their kids who’ve been in their rooms for several years, which have been tailored to their personalities. So, now they’re in this cinder block square. I think they want the comfort of home with a bit of their personality added in.

“I mean the dorms in the schools we have in Nashville are nicer than a lot of dorms out there. But with the age of social media, there’s some competition that goes along with posting about your dorm room.”

Williams says dorm decorating is like “programming a room with a desk, bed and a refrigerator.”

Nothing fancy, just a bookshelf, the most basic dorm accessory, for this Belmont student.

-- Photo By Sam Simpkins | Belmont University

“But you also have to factor in that you really need it to last roughly a year,” she adds. “You don’t spend the money you spend on a home, of course. We provided links for this client, but we didn’t do an installation because that’s an additional cost, which is, for the most part, unneeded for a room that size.

Dorm “essentials” can add up fast. Websites like Dormify (dormify.com) and Dormco (dormco.com) offer everything in one place but are pricier than Amazon and Walmart. A mattress topper for a single bed from Amazon runs roughly half the cost of one from Dormify.

Others not shopping at targeted sites like Dormify will have to put together all that is needed from either College Dorm Essentials, Amazon’s section for all things dormitory.

A mini-fridge might seem a dorm room staple, but some campuses still prohibit them. Check your students’ dorm policies before load-in.

-- Photo By Sam Simpkins | Belmont University

Walmart now has an entire platform called Walmart Realm (walmartrealm.com) that has a design element; students can choose to browse through imagined dorm rooms like Serene Retreat or the Western-themed Y’allternative and then “shop the space.”

Ikea has a college zone called College and Dorm Room Essentials with silos like furniture, bed and bath, and storage and organization.

Know before shopping

Anthony Donovan, associate dean of students for community living and housing at Belmont University in Nashville, says to be mindful of what might not be allowed.

“It’s important to be aware that each university likely has their own requirements regarding room decorating,” Donovan says. “Be sure to know what is and is not allowed before going to the expense and time to add decorative touches.”

The University of Tennessee at Knoxville’s section on student housing says it does not allow electric blankets or even the smallest George Foreman grill, two easy mistakes for parents to make.

Vanderbilt University also has a long list of what is allowed in their dorms. Students at Vandy can only have UL approved tube lights and/or string lights. Faux greenery must be flame-resistant. As well, items cannot be suspended from the ceilings, ceiling grids, ceiling tiles, light fixtures, overhead piping or on or near water pipes.

“When decorating dorm rooms, we encourage students to express their creativity while keeping safety and community in mind,” Donovan says. “Some key tips are to use removable adhesives instead of nails or screws, avoid candles or open flames and be mindful of noise levels with things like speakers.

“Most importantly, communicate with your roommate to create a shared space you both enjoy,” he notes. “The key is creating a comfortable, inviting space that supports your academic success and whole-person well-being.”

Social media’s role

The Facebook page Dorm Room Mamas offers plenty of ideas like whether to unpack a sealed mattress topper before leaving or after getting to the dorm (clearly after), while also offering comfort to parents who are fretting an soon-to-be empty nest.

Some are even going so far as to hire interior designers to beautify their 12-by-20 feet of space.

And many universities have a dorm resale Facebook page where sophomore students can “rehome” their stuff to an incoming class. The University of Tennessee at Knoxville for rehoming dorm items is Unofficial UTK Dorm Item Resale Facebook page.

Another hint from Dorm Mamas is to not take up coveted car space with toiletries that easily could be purchased near the college.

Etsy, a marketplace for handmade, vintage and craft items has its own decorating space with Vanderbilt sweatshirts and other Vandy items, such as a watercolor painting of the campus ($61). There appears to be no end on how to market to highly specific – and excited – groups of people.

Students at colleges and universities throughout Tennessee are already showing their dorm-room hauls with images on Instagram and TikTok, many with the editing skills of a pro.

But conformity was not the case for Amanda Wardle and her daughter. Wardle, a mother of three, remembers when sending her daughter, Selah, an artist, off to the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning

“I think for us, and for Selah in particular, allowing her to create a space that feels safe and comfortable was most important,” Wardle says. “It was her first time living away from home which was nerve-wracking for her and for us. We could have spent lots of money, but ultimately, selecting special items from home was most important in making her feel at home in the dorm.

“She’s an artist and very creative, so making it her own and adding elements that she selected were more important to her than buying out Ikea or leveraging someone else’s ideas. She wanted to go to thrift stores instead.”

Then again, a simple, interesting and personalized collage along with some well-placed string lights have been known to transform what might seem to some as the interior of a prison cell into the first place they can truly call their own.

At least till midterms.