You know the kind of things I mean; the not so obvious items are sometimes the most valuable items. I have lots of things in this list that would be extremely useful for going back to University; whether that’s remotely, like me, or to a physical uni. I would love to know if you have any top tips on things you need, or even the most peculiar item. They are all back to university essentials.

Good Stationery!

So, I know stationery is probably at the top of everyone’s purchase list when it comes to going back to school and university. But getting good stationery is something quite different. For year 1 I surrounded myself in paper and pens, different colours and sticky notes. Which, are all essential and very handy. However, what I didn’t realise I would need is a good quality notebook. There are some tasks for my degree that I need to do over the 3 years; this means getting a notebook that will be able to survive that 3 years and more, if required. So I got myself a Leuchtturm1917 soft cover notebook from Pen Heaven. It has dotted paper which is perfect for what I need over the next 2 years; as I have to keep a matrix of evidence for all the work I am doing. I obviously couldn’t leave Pen Heaven without getting myself a lovely new Parker Ballpoint Pen in Rose Gold and some Pilot Frixion colourful pens; I have everything I need to complete my task now. Did you know this range of Pilot Frixion pens are erase-able? You can rub out the ink using the end of the pen… AMAZING!

Pen Heaven

Tile tracker

These are incredibly brilliant for those items that your children really do not want to lose, but I am quite forgetful and leave things in all sorts of bags or pockets. The tile essentials pack comes with 2 round stick on tiles, a key chain tile and a card tile. This means you can attach them to all of your important uni things like: keys, rucksack or camera. I have put the 2 round tiles in the kiddies school bags, just incase they go awry. You sync the tiles with the app on your phone and you can keep track of your items at all times; I think the batteries last for about a year! The ideas of where to put your tiles are endless, a great university essentials item!

tile

So, you can have 2 way communication on them too. Say for example Noah gets lost and doesn’t know where he is or how to find me – he can press the magic button on the tile (if he has his backpack with him) and it will ring me. We have this set up for if he needs help, he knows to ring my phone from the device. It means I can locate his device and find him straight away. It is very clever. If you have an older child starting university, I can imagine this is a very useful tool for parents to ensure their child is safe. Here are some screenshots from the app:

Tile screenshot

A personal safety alarm

As a woman, and as someone who has felt vulnerable many times whilst out and about, this personal safety alarm from Ashley is definitely essential. The Ashley personal safety alarm comes in cute colours and attaches to your car keys, or anything else you want to attach the carabiner to. They are aimed at women and children; did you know 1 in 5 women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime? It is horrifying. This is a must have item for anyone starting university, or school; you simply pull out the pin (with a firm pull) when in need and it sounds a very loud siren and flashes an LED light.

Ashley safety alarm

Decent headphones

Whether I am trying to concentrate at home, with the kids and Hubby around me, or whether you are in a university library; blocking out surrounding noise is definitely on the university essentials list to me. I am so nosey, I end up watching everyone if I am not careful. So, I invested in some good headphones and I love them. I got rose gold Beats Solo3. They block out the noise around me; even if I am not listening to anything. They are great quality, songs sound amazing, it has a good base to it too. They are comfortable to wear and I can wear them running which is brilliant! They come in a pouch with a carabiner, so they can hook to anything to make them easy to transport too! They have fast fuel too – which means you can get 3 hours of playback with just a 5 minute charge – perfect for student life.

Beats Headphones

Do you have any university essentials that you think would be useful for people going to university, or studying for their degree at home? I would love to know in the comments below. Check out my back to school and uni competition which is currently live too, closes on 13 September 2021.

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11 Comments
  • joanne coulson
    Sunday, September 5, 2021

    Some great suggestions, I like the idea of a safety alarm

  • Georgie Wright
    Sunday, September 5, 2021

    I love a good bit of stationery!

  • Margaret Gallagher
    Wednesday, September 8, 2021

    You are right ! Wouldnt of thought of these – thanks

  • justine meyer
    Monday, September 13, 2021

    My daughter is going back to Uni this year. I never thought of a personal alarm but will definitely be getting one for her

  • Maegan Boyle
    Monday, September 13, 2021

    So, I’m putting the Pilot Frixion pens on my wish list! Erase-able!!?! Whaaaaat! That’s awesome.

    Totally agree with a decent notebook, but I can never have enough notebooks lol

    I hope your study is going well! xox

  • Roy Comper
    Monday, September 13, 2021

    Nice, the tracker is a good idea for me.

  • Victoria Jardine
    Tuesday, September 14, 2021

    I love new stationery – erasable pens???? What is this sorcery! I neeeeeeeed these!

  • Adrian Bold
    Thursday, September 30, 2021

    I used to love going back to school. It was a great opportunity to get lots of new stationary items!

  • Claire Hamilton
    Thursday, September 30, 2021

    Thanks for the great article. Lots of interesting ideas.

  • Patricia Barrett
    Tuesday, October 19, 2021

    Thanks for the great article and suggestions.

  • Suzanne Croft
    Thursday, October 21, 2021

    My daughter’s a stationery freak! Going off to uni this year, the choice of stationery was a major thing!