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Your time at college is a unique, once in a lifetime type of experience. So trust me when I tell you that having certain discussions with your roommate before moving in together is a good idea. This is to not only get a sense of what type of person they are but potentially avoid problems in the future.
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When you are officially moving in. While there is usually more flexibility with the move in schedule for second, third, and fourth year students, first year students have the ability to determine what time they move in. It is in your best interest for your roommate(s) and you to not move in at the same time. This is for a variety of reasons. First you won’t have tension developing between you which can happen during a stressful situation such as moving. Second you have the ability to settle into your own and possibly make your new place feel like home without being crowded with a whole slew of people.
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Who is to bring what you can and cannot bring. Deciding who is bringing what is important because most schools have regulations on how many items you can have in your dorm. For example STCU only allows one mini fridge per dorm, of a certain size, to prevent power surges. This would also be a good time to talk about things like allergies to prevent you from bringing an item to the dorm only to find you have to bring it home again. Now this is not to say you can only bring items approved by your roommate but it is a good way to prevent a future argument.
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Sleep and study schedules and routines. This is definitely important to see how compatible you are living together. Some people like to have a cooler room, others a warmer, some people like complete silence when studying/sleeping, others cannot stand it. Discussing these things, and potentially finding a compromise, which will allow both of you to have an easier transition to the new environment.
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Discuss Interests. Moving into a dorm with someone you have never met before can be extremely difficult, even more so when it is to a school where you don’t know anyone at all. Having a conversation about similar interests can help to break the ice between you and this stranger that you live with. It will allow you to find common ground on which to build a friendly relationship.
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Having small conversations can help to make your school year much easier and potentially less stressful. However you cannot prevent every complication that might arise so if you have roommate problems give it a little bit of time (many schools require you to live with your roommate for a certain amount of time before you switch rooms) and if the situation doesn’t resolve don’t be afraid to get your RA involved. Remember, only you can make the best out of a bad situation.
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