College is challenging, but it doesn’t have to be boring!
In this article, we’ll go over how to plan a perfect college dorm party, from picking the best spot for your bash, to picking music so good people actually show up. It will be the most epic night of your life — or at least of your freshman year. We’ll also tell you how not to screw it up and make sure everyone has fun.
Planning a perfect college dorm party
First things first: You have to have an amazing house or apartment that is super-convenient for your college friends to get to, or else no one will show up. If you’re living at home, rent out a hotel suite with a bunch of your cool friends! If you live in the dorms, sneak into the laundry room and set up some kind of tent situation (the washing machine can be filled with ice). Rent a house off-campus. You can even do like most kids and just sleepover at your friend’s house. This can be a messy, crowded, but totally in-crowd-friendly situation.
If your roommates aren’t on board with a big party, make sure to talk to them or talk to their parents. It’s better to get something going on your own than with no support for it. If your roommate doesn’t get it and you can’t convince her or his parents, you can always ask your parents to make sure you have a great perfect college dorm party.
Funhouse/apartment touches
You need to have a theme for the night if you want people to come! If your night is uncreative, like “just a regular dorm party,” people may get bored and leave. They might even start playing drinking games to bring some excitement back into the night. That’s when things can get messy!
A fun theme can be anything you want — it could be an anniversary or a birthday party, or any holiday or event that’s coming up. It could be related to your college major. Maybe you’re in marketing, so you make decorations out of Post-It notes! Or if you’re a science nerd, the theme is lab coats and Bunsen burners. If you’re a Wiccan, you’ll be praying to the Goddess of Halloween. If you’re an artist, decorate the room with paintings and sculptures!
If you want to go cheap and DIY, all you need is some spray paint and a few sheets of poster board to make your own decorations. Use posters that are relevant to your college major or personality — it can also help if they reflect your overall taste.
Decorations are also an easy way to bring in your own personal style! You can add things that you like to your room, and they’ll automatically be pretty cool. Use an old frame you found in the closet and spray paint it with bright, bold colors. Or do something like use a scarf as a table runner on a simple wooden table — it adds color and texture! Throw on some black lights, and you’ve never had any better-looking furniture.
If you have friends who go to college in other cities, your room can be themed based on your school or city. If you’re going to a smaller college and in a town where no one knows each other, it’s always fun to think of party themes that will bring people from all over together. Pick a theme from anywhere with tons of tourists that are willing to travel: New York City, Vegas, Paris…the possibilities are endless.
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Music to make you want to party
Music is so critical in setting the tone for your party. Is the music going to be “fast and loud”? Or are you going for a more chill, mellow vibe? You can choose whatever type of music fits whatever mood you’re going for.
You don’t need to have a DJ at your party. You can always bring some of your music on a flash drive, and it will be easy to play inside and outdoors. And if you’re having a hard time choosing between two kinds of music, try doing something like the following:
Ask everyone what kind of vibe they want — the answer is probably going to be between mellow and reverent but then fun and loud.
Choose one of those two moods to go for, and then play the other kind of music later on in the night.
You can also bring some games to your party. Especially if you’re going for a themed party, make sure you pick some outdoor games that are related to the theme. For example, if you’re going for a pirate-themed party, make sure to have some pirate-themed games like “Walk the Plank” or “Thar She Blows!”
If you want to set up indoor games, here are some ideas:
Open a photo booth. Put on a little cape and persuade your roommates or neighbors to do the same. Put out the old photo album and have everyone go crazy with props.
What about setting up a game that makes it look like you’re the room is on fire? You can have stuff popping out of your box fan, blankets and sheets hanging from the ceiling, and smoke machines!
A fun way to get your friends to let loose is to do a talent show or karaoke machine.
It’s important that you have some great food at your party. And that you have it at the right time! When you’re throwing a party, only have food and drinks on display when your friends are there. If they see you serving drinks to people they don’t know, they may think you don’t want people to come to the party.
We’d recommend making, sure enough, food is there for everyone, and make sure that it’s there an hour before or 15 minutes after the party starts. This way, when people arrive, it’s not too early or too late to get food. If you get the timing wrong, your party is going to be a disaster.