Snacks You Should Always Have in Your Dorm Room

With the late nights and early mornings that are unavoidable in college, you’re naturally going to be hungry (duh!).  With early morning classes, you may not have enough time to make it to the dining hall for breakfast, and when you’re up late studying or finishing a paper, everything is closed.  Furthermore, you may not have a car to go get something, or even if you do, you may just be feeling too lazy to actually leave your dorm.  Therefore, it’s important to make sure you have some sort of food in your room to save you in these desperate times.

Here are a few staples:

Cereal and milk

Jerry Seinfeld didn’t keep about 16 boxes of cereal in his apartment at all times just for fun.  He did it because cereal is amazing at any point throughout the day, and it allows you to eat and drink at the same time with one hand without looking.  It’s a great late-night snack, and I recommend having at least 2 boxes around because portion control is incredibly hard when it comes to cereal and if you’re not careful, an entire box can easily be gone in a day and a half.

Fruit

Most Americans don’t have the recommended daily servings of fruit so it’s important to always have some around.  Fruit is a healthy option and its various vitamin content can help strengthen your immune system so you won’t get sick, because any college student knows, getting sick can cause you to be really far behind in your work.  Try to always have oranges for their Vitamin C content, which is great for fighting away illnesses; some type of berry for their antioxidants; apples, which are high in fiber and have energy boosting properties; and bananas, which also have energy boosting qualities and are great for pre and post-workout snacks.  Oranges, apples, and bananas don’t necessarily need to be refrigerated, which is an added bonus for a college dorm room, but obviously any fruit is a great, beneficial snack.  Combining the fruit with Greek or other kinds of yogurt is a good snack as well, and it’ll be more filling.

Veggies

Like fruit, most Americans don’t get the recommended daily servings of vegetables, either.  Having a bag of baby carrots around is an easy way to increase your intake, and a small bag doesn’t take up that much room in your mini-fridge.

Pretzels

Sometimes, you just want something crunchy and salty.  Pretzels are a good option because they’re healthier than potato chips, and there are so many different flavors of pretzels out there.  Also, if you have a friend/friends over and they want something to eat, it might be a little weird to offer them carrots.

Bread, Peanut Butter, and Jelly

You don’t have to be in 2^nd grade to enjoy a classic PBnJ.  Whoever thought of this combo is a genius and deserves a hug, and you can always alter it a little bit.  You can make a peanut butter and banana sandwich.  Or, if you wanted to splurge and get Nutella, putting Nutella on bananas is amazing, or having a peanut butter, banana, and Nutella sandwich will probably change your life.

These are just a few common ideas, and there are plenty more options out there.  If you don’t have a car, it’s smart to befriend someone who does so you can take trips to the grocery store together.  Or, if none of your friends have a car, the local bus system should pass through your school pretty frequently.  Just try to go with some friends so you can help each other carry everything.  I do recommend having a mini-fridge in your room, but if you don’t, most dorms have hall kitchens that have a communal refrigerator.

Just be sure to clearly label your food/drinks and hope that you have honest, respectful dorm-mates who won’t steal your things.