The Best College Party Themes That Are Guaranteed Fun

College is well known as a time for parties, meeting new people, trying new things, and learning the type of person that you want to be. With so many great things to experience, some parties should be experienced at least once during every college experience. exploring the Best College Party Themes adds a whole new level of excitement and camaraderie to your campus life.

Thinking out of the box, creating costumes or dressing to the theme, sharing jokes and stories, and learning about other people are all important parts of the college party experience. If you are a sorority or fraternity member or just want to have fun with friends, read on for our top ideas for a college party.

Funny College Party Theme Ideas

Some college parties are singles mixers, some are for dorms, and still, others are just funny themes and a reason to let loose and have fun. These funny college party ideas are sure to bring a laugh. These can lighten the mood at any time of year and add a little extra fun to any weekend.

Anything but a Cup – in an anything but a cup party people will bring something to drink out of that isn’t a cup. Some of the obvious choices are canteens, flasks, and water bottles, but many great options are less obvious. Bowls, vases, fishbowls, and even small storage bins or plant pots can be great choices.
Anything but Clothes – much like anything but a cup, the theme of an ABC party is to think outside of the box and come up with something to wear that isn’t clothes. Lots of sheets, garbage bags, boxes, pillowcases, and tablecloths are sure to appear. By offering prizes for the most original ideas, you can expand the results and are sure to see some great ideas.
Tight and Bright – bring back the 80s and the 90s by having everyone wear clothing that is both bright in color and that is tight. This throwback is sure to be remembered.
Ugly Sweater Party – this theme is fairly common but can certainly find a whole new twist in college with all the uglies Christmas sweaters that you can’t wear to family gatherings. You can use it any time of year by making it just ugly sweaters, ugly Halloween sweaters, or even ugly retro sweaters.
Toga party– toga parties are traditional, and most often result in many bedsheets wrapped in multiple ways and lots of sandals or high heels. Dress your best and make sure you tie those knots tightly!
Silly Costumes – break out the glasses with fake noses, clown shoes, bright Hawaii shirts, and socks with sandals to make the silliest outfit or costume that you can come up with. Take inspiration from movie or TV characters that made you laugh and see who can guess what they are.
High School Stereotypes – choose your favorite stereotypical character, person, or idea from high school and dress to impress. You’ll find cheerleaders, basketball players, nerds, jocks, and computer geeks all at your party and they can represent who they were or who they wish they could be.
Afraid of the Party – each person dresses up as the thing that they are most afraid of. You may see some spiders and planes, but you might also find some failures, shipwrecks, and even storms.
Funny Hats – grab your silliest and funniest hats and be ready for lots of pictures to remember them later.

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More Funny College Party Themes

For even more funny college parties, it’s time to leave the traditional behind and move into the extra-terrestrial, the daring, and the silly. A funny party is all about laughter, light-hearted fun, and great people and all the funniest people are sure to turn up for these themed parties.

Aliens and Astronauts – each guest can choose which and dress as someone who is out of this work in one way or another. A hip-hop astronaut with a reading alien is certain to make the night interesting.
Snow Pants or No Pants – choose your snow pants or go with no pants, and to round it out look for things that may be a trick or loophole. Dressed and skirts aren’t pants, sheets aren’t pants, and a long robe may all make an appearance.
Favorite Foods – not only do people get to bring their favorite food to share, but they also get to dress up as their favorite food and meet people who love it as much as they do.
Anything but Human – guests can pick anything they want to wear and dress up as, as long as it isn’t human. You’re sure to see lots of pets, mythical creatures, and so many other things.
Memes – spend the night guessing what favorite meme each guest is dressed as, and then share your favorite with them.
Athletes and Mathletes – you may be surprised by which of your guests are mathletes and which are athletes when they pull out their favorite items and put together their looks.
Haunted Cartoon House – a haunted house is a great Halloween tradition, but make it funny by having all of the characters a cartoon version, and instead of screams jump out and try to get a laugh from all those who dare to enter.
Foam Party – rent a foam machine and have a great time blasting foam out on the dance floor.
Rhyme Without Reason Party – Grab a partner and get your fancy dress on with a paired costume idea that rhymes without reason, for example French Fries and Butterfly, or Spoon and Moon!

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Easy College Party Themes

Sometimes you want to throw together an easy party or the end of exam week has left everyone tired and in need of some simple fun. Use these easy college party themes to plan something easy for everyone but still fun. You may even start a new fad of easy parties as the semester winds down or as new students settle in and want something that isn’t intimidating to attend.

Jersey Party – have each person wear their favorite jersey, one from their favorite player or team, and any sport counts.
Decades – pick a decade and dress to fit! All guests can choose their own decade to dress as, and you will have an eclectic and interesting assortment of costumes at your party.
Celebrities Back in College – dress as your favorite celebrity, as they are now or as you imagine they were back in college. Spend time talking to everyone to determine who they are dressed as and what they like about that person to get the most from the night.
Glows in the Dark – turn off the lights and set up a black light. Glow sticks, glow crowns, neon clothes, cups, and everything else. There are no limits to what you’ll find in the dark.
Dress for the Job You Want – we have all heard this saying often enough, but who gets to act it out? Have each person dress for the job they want, including the one they are in school for right now or their dream job that they know they may never have. Writers, actors, doctors, lawyers, and vets are sure to make an appearance, but you’ll be surprised at how many jobs are out there and what your friends really want to do.
Disney Made Me – each attendee will pick their favorite Disney character, either new or old, back to the origins, or the one who affected their life the most. You’ll learn a lot about each of your guests seeing how they choose to represent that character and how they played a part in their growing up.
Clothes Graffiti – everyone becomes a walking yearbook signature page when they wear something white and everyone uses markers to sign them, write on them, draw on them, and decorate them.
Cowboys/Cowgirls – grab your best western wear and show off your inner cowpoke to gain entrance to this party.
PJs til Breakfast – gather your closest friends, put on your pajamas, and enjoy an all-night pajama party that ends with breakfast for the group. Cook at home or find your way to your favorite breakfast diner.
Flashlight Party – this puts a new twist on the glow sticks by using flashlights to provide light for the area. People will get to focus on those who are closest to them, get to know them, and with everyone having a flashlight it will be bright enough to see without needing all the lights on. Scary shadows are sure to be a side effect.
Scary Movie Marathon – Nightmare on Elm Street anyone? Pick out your favorite scary movie franchise, even if it’s Scary Movie, and start a marathon. Begin early or stay up all night, but watch them all and enjoy the company.
Graffiti Party – Ask everyone to wear white t-shirts and hand out colored marks so guests can write on each other.

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Daring College Party Themes

If you have a close group of friends, are meeting a whole group of brave and daring people, or are simply looking to plan a party that is unlike all the other parties, then a daring college party theme is for you. They take the average party and make it just a little more risky, exciting, and new. No one who attends will end up bored, and these parties will be the talk of the school for days afterward.

White Lie Party – each person will write a white lie on their shirt, and this exposes that one aspect of them to other people, and is a great way to begin conversations and encourage social interactions. They can be as silly or as serious as the individual wants them to be. Most of the parties with this theme will also have people dressed in white, or wearing white shirts.
Truth or Dare – launch a huge game of truth or dare or have each person bring a card to pin to their shirt that has a question they will answer or a dare they will do and as guests walk the party and mingle they can choose whether each person they meet should tell their truth or do the dare.
Red Flag Party – get the hardest part of deciding to date someone or not out of the way first with a red flag party. This can be as funny or as serious as the group decides, as each person will carry a small red flag with their red flag behavior on it, pin it to their shirt, write it on their clothing, or display it in some other way. There is space for a lot of creativity in this theme, and people can choose how much they want to reveal about themselves.
Spies in the School – get out your best black clothing and sneakiest shoes as each guest shows how they think spy dresses. Maybe they’ll sneak their way to the snack table and it might require frequent refilling.
Mardi Gras – if you can’t go to Mardi Gras, bring it to your college! Make sure everyone has beads to share, hand out some fun drinking glasses, and watch the night unfold.
Lingerie – if you are daring enough each person can dress in their best lingerie, including any robes they have that go with it. This party is sure to never be forgotten.

Non-Costume College Party Themes

Not every party needs to have a costume or a set of attire for it to have a great theme. Themes address foods, activities, and games too. While you can set a dress code like fancy dress, casual clothes, or pajamas, they are not necessarily part of the theme and just add an extra layer to the experience.

Twister Party – bring everyone together with this old favorite, and set up games of Twister around the room, put the movie on for added atmosphere and you can even stage competitions.
Cookie Party – share a bit of home with your favorite cookies, and they will double as not only a way to learn something about people but also as a great midnight snack when you need to refuel from all the dancing.
Snack for the Ages – make all the snacks that are enjoyed by different ages. Bring out the Dunkaroos for the elementary years you enjoyed, and put out mozza sticks for the later years, with chips, cookies, twinkies, and anything else that were the best snacks of all the years you’ve been snacking.
Bonfire – a bonfire is almost always welcome; they bring people together in a way that other parties don’t quite do. Clothing is comfortable and warm, and BYOB is common. These are a laid-back way to spend time with people or can be a huge party to meet lots of new people.
Drink from Rags to Riches – start outside with a keg, cheap beer, and soda. As the group works their way through they move inside to the more expensive alcohols and mixed drinks. This party can also be done in reverse, where you are likely to enjoy the more expensive drinks before getting to the cheap ones, and the cheaper ones will be easier to take once people are buzzed.

Best College Party Themes Final Note

Planning a party can feel overwhelming, and planning a party at college, where you are almost certain not to know all of the guests or who will show up is a little bit harder. To make planning easier begin by picking a theme, and then design your decorations, food, and even guest list around that. If you are doing a food theme party be sure to invite the students in the culinary classes, and remember that it can be as easy as chips in a bowl.

With almost endless ideas for themes, from funny themes to daring themes, easy themes, and ones that take a lot of attention to detail, there is certain to be a college party theme that fits your needs and will make a great impression on all the guests. Not only are college parties a great way to have fun, but they also round out the experience as a whole and help to form lifelong bonds with students that you share experiences, work on projects, and share your wins.

About Author

Jane Sheriff is the founder, creative director, party planner and mom of three. She started Darling Celebrations back in 2012 to share easy and beautiful ideas for celebrating the special events in life.