Shopping and moving in once you arrive in Tampa!

On the subject of shopping for your dorm room I also wanted to point out a few of the options for moving your belongings in. About 60% of our undergraduate students live out of state, 30% in the state of Florida, and 10% Internationally; that being said for the majority of UT it is quite a challenge figuring out how you will get all of these new items down to Florida. From my experience as a student and seeing how other families do it through the admissions office I have learned a few tricks:

• If you do not live in the state: 1) Buy all of your new dorm items down here. We have a Wal-Mart, Target, and Ikea within 15 minutes of the campus. It saves the hassle of hauling everything down with you, plus you can see the room before purchasing anything. 2) Send some of the smaller items to campus via mail one week before school starts, address it 401 W Kennedy Blvd Box # Tampa Fl 33606 3) If you are bringing a car down, pack your car completely full and put it on a train. In the past this has been a cheaper option than driving your car down, plus you don't have to pay extra to bring anything on your flight.
• If you do live in the state: 1) Buy Buy Buy anytime you want :) that's what I did, I am from Florida. My dad wasn't so happy because we then had to rent a large van to haul it all over but it is easier doing this from in the state than driving long distances. 2) You can also wait and purchase all of your items once you get here.
• If you are an International student: 1) I would wait for everything once you get here. Just watch your luggage weight, I know some international students who get charged a lot every time they go home because their luggage weighs so much. We have two GREAT malls within 15 minutes of school if you want to do all of your shopping once you are in Tampa. Also for International students you need to make sure you have all of your documents with you (VISA, Passport, I-20). Keep copies and the originals in your carry on and not in your luggage you are checking in! This is very important. There will be a current UT International student posting tomorrow on topics for International Students. She will be addressing all of the issues she came across while moving in!

Now once you get here, these are some of the things you should bring that will make the move in 100% easier!

• A HAND DOLLY/HAND CART- whatever you would prefer to call it, it is a necessity. Luckily my dad is a very handy guy and every year I have a great dolly to cart all of my belongings from the car to the room. And each year we have other families asking us where we got it or telling us they wish they had thought to bring one. The dorms might not always have available parking near by when you move in, so you may be bringing your stuff from a few parking lots away. AND its August in Florida so its definitely not going to be cold out! As a freshman you do get to move in early and you have the O-Team helping you move all of your stuff in, but it is still pure mayhem with all of the freshman trying to unload and check in.
• Wear comfortable clothing, and comfortable shoes. I still laugh every time I see students and their families moving in while wearing nice clothing. You will be sweaty, trust me..as long as you plan for it, it won't be so bad!
• The first day you move in I suggest bringing in cleaning supplies before you move in a lot of your belongings. They clean the rooms over the summer, but it can still be a little dusty. This is all personal preference but my roommate and I both like cleaning the rooms ourselves.
• Bring a pretty well stocked tool box/kit. You will need most of the basics to put things together and get settled. A hammer will be your best friend while trying to get your bed in place.

I think that's it for now! Again if you have any questions please feel free to comment and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!

Have a great Wednesday!