Lehigh University:

Source: Diane Albright, professional organizer and owner of All-Bright Ideas organizing service

Every small space poses a challenge to its inhabitants, but residence hall rooms can be a particularly vexing prospect for students.

 "They're unique in that they are the one place where the student has to do everything: sleep, study, practice an instrument, spend time with friends, eat, work on projects and get ready to go out," says Diane Albright, a Lehigh Valley-based professional organizer and owner of All-Bright Ideas personal organizing service. "It's hard to keep things organized in any tiny space, but especially so in that type of circumstance."

Albright often advises her clients on the maximum usage of space, and offers the following tips for residence hall dwellers:

• Look for space in hidden spaces, such as under the bed, on top of cabinets, or at the back of closets. To create extra space under the bed, add bed risers.
• Have features do double-duty. A trunk can double as a table and a place to store sweaters.
• Go vertical. Since floor space is limited, don't take up unnecessary chunks of it by placing stereo equipment, clothing, stacks of books or CD's, or even sporting equipment on it. "Look above and below what is furnished, then add non-permanent shelves, compartments or hooks," says Albright.
•  Buy some simple drawer organizers to help make order out of a chaos. "A student's desk drawer becomes something like the junk drawer in every home," says Albright. "Everything that doesn't seem to have a place finds its way in there." She suggests an inexpensive plastic or wire grid organizer that separates pencils, pens, paper clips, coins, keys, tape, glue, a stapler, stamps, and other items.
  "It's always easier to stay organized when you have a place to put things," she says. "And if you have some kind of system for storing them in an organized fashion, you'll always know where something is when you need it."
• Plan according to the season, and store out-of-season items in storage tubs that can slide under your bed. "There's no need to chew up big chunks of space in your drawers with winter sweaters during warm weather," she says.
• Realistically assess what you'll need to get by. "Don't bring more than is absolutely necessary," says Albright. "A residence hall room is most likely the smallest space the students will ever live in, and this needs to be the most efficiently organized space. That means not bringing in items that aren't necessary. Ask yourself, 'Do you really need it or really want it?'"

Read more tips on maximizing the space in your residence hall room.