University term time is about to begin and now is the time to make sure you have all of your university essentials packed and ready to go. Deciding what to take can be difficult, especially if you’re a first-year student. At Ryman, we want to make packing for uni as easy as possible. We have prepared the ultimate university packing list that's full of all the back to uni essentials you’ll need.

Moving away from home is a big deal, and you'll want your home comforts with you. The majority of uni halls and student rentals will have a bed provided so you shouldn’t need to worry about that. Which leaves you able to focus on the fun things!

First things first, you need a space to do your work. A great space-saving desk is our Bray Corner Home Office Desk (£49.99). Perfect for rooms of all sizes, it'll slot easily into any corner of your bedroom. It also has built-in storage for your files and folders. Once your desk is sorted, you’ll be needing an office chair! For maximum comfort and comfort, we recommend the Castellan PU Leather Office Chair (£64.99). It’s available in grey and pink, so you can be sure that you’ll find one that suits your colour scheme.

To accompany your desk and office chair, why not get a laptop stand? You’ll be typing up a lot of essays at uni and hunching over your laptop to write them won’t be good for your posture. The Fellowes I-Spire Laptop Quick Lift Riser (£10) is perfect for you to get your work done while minimising the chance of developing neck pain.

You don’t want to be working in the dark, so get yourself a desk lamp. The Premier Housewares Desk Lamp (£14.99) is ideal for helping prevent eye strain while you’re working. You don’t want to be struggling for light when you’re pulling those all-nighters!

Take being clutter-free to the next level and get yourself some storage boxes. Underbed storage is the perfect home for items that you don’t necessarily need daily. The STRATA Curve Underbed Plastic Storage Box (£18.00) is perfect for this. Plus, it comes in a pack of three! You’ll have plenty of storage with these 30-litre boxes.

If you’re lucky enough to have your own bathroom at uni, you’ll need somewhere to store your shampoo, conditioner and shower gel. Getting some movable storage like the 4 Drawer Trolley (£32.99) is great for keeping things all together - you could even personalise it to keep you extra organised. The wheels make it easy to move around which is also great if you’re sharing - you don’t want anyone else using your stuff!

Bathroom storage is covered but where should you put your dirty washing? We have the perfect space saving solution. Check out the Beldray Collapsible Laundry Basket (£16.99) its impressive 27 litre capacity is deep enough to hold plenty of clothes, whilst still being lightweight with strong handles. Perfect for when space is limited, this basket collapses to fit under the sink, in a kitchen cupboard, under your bed or even down the side of the washer. 

Every bathroom needs a bin. A perfectly sized bathroom bin is the Brabantia 5L Newlcon Pedal Bin (£34.99). It’s just the right size for make-up wipes, empty toothpaste tubes and other bathroom waste. Make sure you’ve got this on your university essentials list!

The infamous uni kitchen. As well as a good bottle of all purpose cleaner and some antibacterial wipes, there are other essential items you need for your uni kitchen.

First of all, you’ll need a sturdy set of pans. If you buy the right set, these are the only pans you’ll ever need while you’re at uni, so it’s worth investing in them. We recommend the Swan Retro Frying Pan Set of 2 (£25.99) and the Swan Retro Saucepan Set of 3 (£49.99). Sturdy and reliable, these pans will last you for your whole university life and beyond. Plus, they come in a lot of different colours!

Now you’ve got the larger items sorted, you can move on to the fun pieces- tech and stationery! 

A laptop is essential for important research and typing up essays. In a post-pandemic world, laptops also ensure you can access education remotely, even if you can’t attend the seminar or lecture in person.. The ASUS Swift 1 128GB Windows 10 Laptop (£279.99) is a thin, compact and reliable laptop that will put you at the top of the class. The Swift 1 is completely fan-less meaning there is no noise, no distractions, no frustration - just silence. With an incredible 16 hours of battery life from one charge, you won’t have to worry about it cutting you off in the middle of a seminar. What’s even better, is the laptop also comes with a 1-year subscription to Microsoft 365 worth £59.99.

Save yourself the hassle of waiting in a long queue of students all trying to print their essays in the library, and bring your own printer. There are so many to choose from and we know the importance of finding the best printer for students. Take a look at the HP Deskjet 2710e All-in-One Printer it will have your essays printed quickly and looking great and the bonus is, it is wireless. Currently, this printer is only £54.99 which also includes 6 months worth of ink! 

A speaker is an absolute must for uni. You need something to play both your concentration and party playlists on. Also, playing familiar music will help you settle into a new space a lot easier. The Intempo Vintage Bluetooth FM Radio with Leather Carry Strap (£32.99) is the perfect size for travelling to uni. This speaker combines Bluetooth technology, a trusty AUX in cable along with an FM radio transmitter which gives you the flexibility to choose your own tunes or ride the radio waves.

You can’t head off to uni without packing a good quality pair of headphones. How else will you tune out all the library chit chat and concentrate? The JBL Wave 100 Wireless Earphones (£24.99) are perfect for keeping you focused in the library and keep you company on your walks across campus. An absolute must for uni!

You absolutely will be needing stationery at university! Come deadline season you’ll be wanting all the notes you can get.

To make your notes, you’ll require something to write in and write with. Ryman has a brilliant selection of pens and notebooks, all ready to help you succeed. We would recommend the Oxford Campus Pastel A4 Wirebound Notebook (£11.99) for your studies. They come in a pack of three, so you can have different notebooks for different modules, which we would highly recommend.

Now you’ve got your notebooks, you need your pens! We recommend using the BiC 4-Colour Medium Ballpoint Rose Gold Pack of 3 (£7.99) pens. These pens each contain four colours: Black, blue, green and red, which speeds up colour-coding and helps everything look a little neater!

Don’t head to uni without a good pack of highlighters! The STABILO BOSS 6 Pack Pastel Highlighters are better than half price at £4.79. Stock up while you can, you’ll need them to highlight the important information in your uni notes. You’ll thank yourself for it when revising.

Put all of your lovely pens in a pencil case so they’re not rolling around in your bag and causing chaos. Our Clear Pencil Case (£1.49) will easily fit all of your pens in and it can be personalised! Add your name and reduce the risk of a pencil case mix-up in the lecture halls.

You’ll have so many lectures to attend and essays to write, you’re going to need help keeping track of everything. Our Wild Bloom Weekly Planner (£4.99) is perfect for noting down deadlines, lecture times and keeping track of whose turn it is to empty the kitchen bin. The last thing you want is to suddenly wake up at midnight realising you have an essay due the next day. Take away that stress and get a weekly planner.

Add all of these university essentials to your packing list and you’ll be good to go. Ensure you’re completely uni-ready with Ryman and explore our extensive back to uni range today!