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Wanna plan a Halloween party in college but are not sure what theme to choose? In this post, I will share 10 Halloween party ideas for college students
PS: At the end, you can download a Halloween party planner printable for free!
Let’s get started!
Planning Tips
First things first, some planning tips. There is more to planning a party than just announcing it!
- Send out invitations in advance! People like to plan their night outs usually before the day they go out, especially on a special night like Halloween!
- Make it clear what theme you’d like
- Keep it sustainable (my tips are at the end of this post)
- Also, make the main activity or focus of your party clear so people can make sure they will enjoy your party!
Confused about all the elements that go into planning a party? Don’t worry that’s okay and normal!
But to make it a little easier for you, I created this super easy (and cute) party planner for you.
Theme Ideas
Let’s get to the theme ideas!
Related Post: How to host an epic college Halloween party!
1. Haunted house party
This Halloween party theme is perfect for college students. Make your location like a haunted house!
That can be your college apartment, your shared dorm room, or a rented room somewhere else.
However, make sure to not go overboard with decoration in a small room, since you’ll have less space for guests!
2. Fall themed / non- scary
One of my favorite Halloween party ideas for college students is to keep it fall-themed! Not everyone is into scary stuff, so if that’s you and you have plenty of friends who are like that as well, try it out!
You could use pumpkins, leaves, and fall colors in your decorations, make pumpkin spice lattes, apple pies, and popcorn!
3. Contest/ show theme
My next theme idea is to do a contest/show theme. For that, write on your invitations that costumes should be show-based. That makes for a fun costume party and games as well.
For example, you could make it into a competition and have those who want to present something related to their costume. The winner then gets a bag of candy or a gift card!
4. Funny costumes
Likewise, you can also make your theme funny, and ask your guests to dress up funny rather than scary. This will definitely contribute to a good mood and is also great for games.
For this theme, you could play games such as Twister or other fun games, or watch comedies!
5. Scary theme
This Halloween party idea is definitely more classic. On your invitation, make it clear that this is a scary party and guests should dress accordingly!
Again, you can find some great games for this theme.
6. Movie characters
Next are movie characters! This Halloween theme idea is great for college students because everyone has seen some kind of movie they can recreate with a costume. And there are so many movies out there to choose from!
To make it more competitive and fun, you can give 5 options for your guests to choose from and to be creative with the characters (aka to not always choose the main character).
This would create 5 “teams” if you choose 5 movies, and you guys could play games in those teams.
7. Fiction theme
This theme, you can turn into a scary or non-scary party. For example, your theme can be fictional scary movies/stories or fictional characters that aren’t necessarily scary.
8. Non-fiction/real theme
Next, you can choose non-fiction as a Halloween party theme for college students. This can be divided into 2 sub-themes as well, just like fictional themes.
For the brave ones of you, your theme can be non-fictional scary movies/stories or characters (basically real stories), or just any real character that isn’t necessarily Halloween-y.
9. Disney
Hosting a Halloween party for your girlfriends? You could create a Disney theme! Whether you just watch Disney movies all night, or just your costumes are Disney-related and you play drinking games or scary stories, it’s up to you!
10. Couple’s theme
Lastly, your Halloween party can maybe require guests to bring a partner (for example if all of your friends are taken or have someone they date).
This way, couples can dress together and choose costumes that match!
Related Post: How to host an epic college Halloween party!
Those were 10 Halloween Party Ideas for College Students!
These are just a few theme ideas for your party. Some of them are for you to focus your party on, such as creating a haunted house or just a fall theme, and some are for your guests to know, like what kind of costume to wear.
Costumes
Talking about costumes: if your Halloween party is a costume party, make sure to have a great costume yourself!
The website HalloweenCostumes.com offers great costumes for college parties and they have some good deals currently! Check them out here.
Since I already published 2 posts with costume ideas, I won’t add them here as well, but here are the costume ideas:
Decoration
The decoration is the key to hosting the perfect Halloween party! If the decor is thought out, people will enjoy it!
You should choose the party decor based on your theme, but don’t forget to add these basics!
- Fake spider webs
- Skeletons
- Smoke machine (if you can find one at the thrift store or have money for it)
- Pumpkins
Related Post: How to host an epic college Halloween party!
Hosting a Sustainable & Safe Halloween Party
Are you ready to plan your Halloween party now that you chose your theme? Hold on for one more minute and read my tips for keeping your party sustainable, responsible, and safe:
- Invite people you actually like or want to know better. That way you won’t get into awkward situations
- Use paper plates (I am aware that you might not have real plates in your dorm, but please avoid making immense amounts of waste because of a party. They are fun without that, so use paper plates instead of plastic ones)
- Try to serve food that doesn’t need cutlery so you save some plastic from the bin by not needing cutlery
- Use paper straws or metal straws if you want to use straws
- Be safe and don’t get drunk at your own party! Of course, you can have a drink or two, but you are the host and are responsible for the safety of your guests, so just make it easier for yourself and don’t get completely wasted
- If you use disposables, make sure they are compostable and dispose of them properly. Having clear labeled bins out makes your job much easier, even if some people might ignore them when they’re intoxicated
These are just a few tips for a better party, not just for the guests but for the environment!
I hope you found these Halloween party ideas for college students useful!
Stay safe and until soon,
This is great! Thanks for the ideas, I’m trying to be a good first year student! This is my time to shine and be creative