I love to be on my phone. It can do everything from messaging my friends (Facebook chat) to playing my favorite music (Spotify) to helping me pick up jogging (C25K). While seeing me on it may drive my mom crazy from time to time, there are just so many great apps to help me keep my life in order. There is also a myriad of really good apps for college students to make your college years easier; here are the five that help me most.
To help you find the best apps for you, I’ve made an updated and expanded list of the best websites and apps for college students. It’s available in printable, clickable PDF format in my free resource library for email subscribers. You can get the password by subscribing to my mailing list!
Favorite to-do list app: Carrot
I’ve tried a lot of to do list apps, and this one is my favorite for a few reasons. Number one: it’s hilarious. Carrot has its own personality, which “yells” at you when you don’t do things and compliments you when you’re productive (my favorite Carrot-compliment: “Your hair looks so soft today”). It also has a clean layout and is very simple to use and understand. Bonus: you rack up points for the things you accomplish, and eventually get a pet “cat” in the app, whom you can pet and feed.
There are a few down-sides to the app, however. While I love the interface, you need to earn the ability to edit list items, which can be frustrating. Carrot also doesn’t take into account that you won’t do anything while sleeping, and it’s not great to wake up to a message saying “You disappoint me.” If your skin is thick enough and you recognize it’s all in good fun, however, this app is great for keeping on top of your assignments. I personally find it much more useful than more complicated to-do apps, which tend to have a lot of bells and whistles I don’t use.
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Price: $2.99
Favorite productivity app: Pomodoro
The Pomodoro app uses the “Pomodoro” method for productivity: work for 25 minutes, then take a 5 minute break; repeat. After four pomodoros (a pomodoro is a 25-minute unit of working), you get a 15 minute break.
I find this app easy to use and effective in getting me to focus. It has a count-down clock which helps me concentrate on my work (after all, there’s only another 15 minutes left…), and makes a cute “ding!” noise to alert me that it’s time for my break, or time to get back to work. In the app’s settings, it’s also possible to change the length of your breaks and pomodoros, and how many pomodoros you have to complete before getting a long break.
Overall, I find this app useful and easy to work with.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Price: $1.99
Favorite study app: Cram
Cram is the app version of the Cram.com website, which lets you make and use flashcard sets online for free. I find the sit absolutely invaluable when I have exams coming up because, not only do you get to make and use your own flashcards, but you can search their database and often find pre-made flashcards for your textbook or course as well.
The app has two modes: memorize and cram. Memorize works as a teaching mode that cements the information in your brain. Cram helps you review the material until you get all the answers right. I used to use paper flashcards, but this app is easy enough to use that I’ve converted. It’s better for the environment, too!
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Price: Free
Favorite learning app: iTunesU
I’m an iTunesU addict. iTunesU is a massive database of courses on a wide variety of subjects from differing universities. Sometimes they are a series of lectures held by different speakers, or sometimes a full class taught at a university like Yale or Stanford. It’s almost always possible to find lectures to supplement your in-class learning, or lectures on a subject you’d love to take but haven’t had the chance to at your own university. There is a huge amount of variety, and you can download video or audio lectures to listen to offline. One of my favorite things to do is to download lectures related to my current classes and listen to them as I walk to class. Supplementing my learning in the minutes where I normally wouldn’t do anything except listen to music helps me build a better frame of reference for class information, and makes me a generally more well-informed person.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Price: Free
Favorite white noise app: Infinite Storm
This app has been a life-saver for me. Whenever I’m anywhere except my room, I have such a hard time focusing on my work, either because my environment is too quiet or too loud. Well, (just call me Goldilocks) this app is just right. It plays beautiful, soothing rain and thunder sounds which you can customize yourself to fit your needs by adjusting the volume and selecting different rain types, like Rainforest rain or “tin roof” rain. In addition to rain noises, the app also has a few other kids of white noise such as a desk fan. There is a timer so that you can set it to play for a certain amount of time as you are working or falling asleep. I find that this app soothes me while I’m working, so that in addition to being better-able to focus, I’m more relaxed when I do my work.
I could not possibly love this app more. Best of all, it’s free!
Rating: 5/5 stars
Price: Free
These are my absolute favorite apps for college students. I find in my own life that they make me more focused, more productive, and all-around a better student.
What’s your favorite app for college?
This post was originally published SaraLaughed.com. It has been modified and improved for use at College Compass with permission of the author.
