A college student lives in a small room that someone else owns. The walls are bare and usually an institutional shade of cream. The desk is where they study, eat and watch films. They have little money and less space, and they move at least once a year.
That tells you what a good gift looks like. It should make the room feel like theirs, take up no floor space, pack flat and not break the housing rules. Here is what fits.
The rules of the room
Most halls of residence forbid nails and screws, and many charge for marks on the paint. Some restrict what can be hung from ceilings or over doors, and most ban candles. Before you buy anything for the wall, bear in mind that it has to go up with removable strips, hooks, clips or putty.
That favours light things: fabric and paper. It rules out heavy frames.
For the wall
A tapestry
The best single gift for a dorm room. One tapestry covers a large area of bare wall, weighs almost nothing, hangs from a few removable hooks or clips, and folds into a drawer at the end of the year. It changes the whole room in ten minutes.
- Size: 50 × 60 inches suits the wall beside or above a single bed. 68 × 80 covers most of a wall.
- Design: choose something they will be happy to live with for a year. Space, landscapes and animals are safe. Blue Fox in Space, Star Valley and Hand of the Stars all come as tapestries.
- Add string lights and you have given them the classic student wall. See tapestries with fairy lights and LED strips.
Check the hall's rules about fabric on walls, and keep it away from heaters. See how to hang a tapestry without nails and the tapestry size guide.
Posters
Cheap, light and easy to swap. Two or three in a set look more considered than one. They go up with removable strips or putty and come down without a mark. See how to hang posters without frames or wall damage.
A small canvas
For a student in a flat or a house, with more freedom. A small canvas is light enough for removable strips, and it can simply stand on a shelf or a desk. It feels more like a real possession than a poster.
See tapestry vs poster vs canvas for a dorm room.
For the desk
A desk mat is the most practical gift on this list. Dorm desks are hard, scratched laminate. A mat covers that, gives a smooth surface for a mouse and for writing, quiets a keyboard for the sake of a room-mate, and makes the desk look like the student's own. It rolls up when they move.
- Size: the medium, 23.6 × 13.8 inches, fits a laptop and a mouse on a small desk. The large, 31.5 × 15.5, fits a keyboard and mouse with room to spare, if the desk is wide enough. Dorm desks are often narrow, so measure or choose the medium.
- Design: a calm one for someone who studies at the desk. A bolder one for someone who games there.
See desk setups for students, the desk mat size guide and how to clean a desk mat.
For the bag
- Pins. About $6 each. For a backpack, a tote, a jacket or a noticeboard. Three together make a small collection. See how to style pins.
- A keychain. About $15. A new student has new keys: a room key, a bike lock, a mailbox. A bright charm makes them easier to find at the bottom of a bag. See acrylic keychain durability and care.
To wear
A graphic t-shirt is a good gift if you know the size. Students live in t-shirts. Our tees run from XS to 5XL. Because each is made to order, clothing can't be exchanged (returns within 30 days are possible, but you pay the return shipping), so check the size chart or ask. See how to style an art graphic tee.
By what they study, or how they spend their time
- Computer science and engineering: cyberpunk, glitch and grid pieces. See gifts for a programmer.
- Physics and astronomy: Black Hole, Light Nebula.
- Art and design: bold, graphic pieces such as Stone Angel Vaporwave.
- Literature and history: Blue Crow, or a fantasy landscape.
- Music: see desk setups for music producers.
- Gamers: a large desk mat. See small desk setup ideas.
- Anyone under stress: something calm. See what is lo-fi art.
By budget
Approximate prices at the time of writing.
- Under $10: a pin.
- $15 to $20: a keychain, a small poster, or three pins.
- $20 to $40: a desk mat, a larger poster or a t-shirt.
- $30 to $65: a tapestry.
- $60 to $100: a room bundle: a tapestry, a desk mat and a pin in matching or related designs.
See dorm room wall decor on a student budget.
By occasion
- Leaving for college: a tapestry and a desk mat, ordered in July so they arrive before the move.
- A care package mid-term: pins, a keychain, a small poster. Light and cheap to post on.
- Birthday: whatever the room still lacks.
- The holidays: something for next term's room. See holiday art gifts by budget.
- Moving into a first flat: a canvas or a framed print. See first apartment wall art.
- Graduation: see graduation gifts.
What to avoid
- Large or heavy framed pieces for a dorm. They can't be hung, and they are hard to move.
- Anything fragile.
- Things that take up floor or shelf space.
- Your taste in place of theirs. When in doubt, ask, or let them choose.
Where to send it
Everything is made to order: 2 to 7 business days for production and 3 to 7 for US delivery. Different product types ship separately. Think about the address.
- Sending to a hall of residence: use the full mailing address the college gives, with the student's name and box or room number. College mail rooms can add a day or two.
- Check the term dates. Don't send a parcel that will arrive during a holiday, when the mail room is shut and the student has gone home.
- Addresses can't be changed after an order ships. If in doubt, send it to the family home.
Browse the tapestries, desk mats and poster prints collections.