Transitioning to a college closet is a huge part of the dorm room experience—students must fit clothes, shoes, jewelry, scarves and all things found in a wardrobe into a shrunken closet.

I remember seeing my dorm room closet for the first time and worrying I would never fit all of my “stuff.”

I wouldn’t call myself a master of organization, but I have learned how to keep an organized dorm room closet and fit as much as I can into that space.

Don’t fret, even though it is a challenge, with organization and a little creativity, it will all fit. Here are some basic organizing tips to relieve the pain of shoving things into the closet.

1. Buy organizational hangers. Make use of thin hangers, scarf hangers, jewelry hangers and pant hangers that can be attached to each other.

2. Organize tops by sleeve length. Organize your closet in this order: tank tops, sleeveless tops, short sleeved tops, three quarter sleeved tops, long sleeved tops.

3. Keep similar items next to each other. For example, I always hang pants near pants and dresses near dresses.

4. Place taller and sturdier shoes near the back. Put boots in the back, tennis shoes and wedges closer, heels, then flats, sandals and flip flops in the very front. It makes finding shoes in the morning a lot easier.

5. Color coordinate to keep digging through clothes less time consuming. Follow this color sorting pattern: white, yellow, orange, red, purple, pink, green, blue, brown, grey, black, denim.

6. Rotate items so the most recently worn item is in the back. This will guarantee everything is worn, and some items don’t sit in the closet all year untouched. You’ll feel like you’re looking at a completely new closet every time you rotate items.

7. Trust the tips and stay organized. A clean closet will make for a happy college girl.