Posts published in May, 2016

11 Best Study Apps to Make Your Campus Life Better

BY ALYSSA SELLORS

11 Of The Best Study Apps to make your campus life more fun

Are you a fresher who has just started their first at the university? Or it could be that you’re on your second year, third year, with quite some years ahead? Well, whatever the case, the truth of the matter is that being a student can be tough. All over a sudden, you find yourself faced with all the responsibilities that come with being a young adult; being in charge of your time management, finances, studies, social life and so on so forth. In this day and age where most students boast of iPhones, iPads, tablets, and a plethora of other hand held devices, each student has an opportunity to make the most out of it. With these hand held devices, comes numerous study Apps that a student can use to make their campus and college life more bearable, even fun, while also ensuring that you’re studying hard and smart.

Below, I have compiled a list of some of the best study Apps that no student can afford to miss. They include apps to enhance your studies as well as your time management;

1. Orderella; soon after you begin your college or campus life, you’ll realize that you have to endure long queues either at the college cafeteria, restaurant, bar, etc. Orderella has been nicknamed by many as the ‘beat the queue’ app; it helps you order your meals and refreshments from the convenience of your phone! You’ll just need to select the restaurant or bar that you’re in, and you’ll get a menu of all foods and drinks on offer. Once you’ve placed an order, you’ll get an SMS confirming the restaurant, and table number. This app is gaining huge popularity in places like the UK, and is being used in over 200 learning institutions.
2. Dropbox; Dropbox is a free app that helps you save all your files, assignments, documents, etc, safely. With Dropbox, you can access your files from anywhere and on any gadget, as long as you have some internet connection. Students no longer have to rely on flash disks and other hand held devices that could get lost or damaged easily. With Dropbox you can share files with friends, classmates, and as the admin of the account, you decide what one can access, and what they can’t.
3. Freed.ly; student life and multitasking are synonymous. You have to be updated on all that’s happening around you, exam dates, deadlines for essays, overdue essays, part time job applications, and so on so forth. Freed.ly enables you to consolidate and combine all these items into a single news feed. It gives you notifications and reminders each time something interesting is scheduled or due.
4. Mathway; this free app is ideal for math and sciences students. It guides you step by step as you search for answers to a solution; it indicates all formulas and steps of solving geometry, algebra, vectors, and all mathematical quizzes.
5. CliffNotes; CliffNotes is for students of literature and languages. The App offers you helpful analysis on all characters, theme, plot, stylistic devices, summary, and all other angles covered in literature studies. The beauty of this App is that it is available in audio versions that you can listen to while taking walks, or even during group discussions.
6. EasyBib; essay writing is always a pain in the neck for most students; the citations, the various styles and formats are always demanding. EasyBib lets you enter the title of the book, and it offers you the right and relevant citations, in MLA, APA, Harvard, or whatever format is required. You’ll then copy and transfer the citation on your bibliography.
7. iTunes U; this free App comes readily in all Apple devices; it helps you access the various courses and study programs being offered by the leading universities. If you harbor future desires to study in some of the top universities like Yale, Oxford, Cambridge, MIT, you name them; it provides you with the latest subjects and courses being offered, and academic calendars for the same.
8. Dictionary.com; this App is not just ideal for enthusiasts of words and idioms; it’s for everyone. You’ll get the meanings of complex and tricky words you may come across while studying. It also gives you meanings of popular idioms used in the English language, and how to use them. So that the next time your lecturer drops a witty phrase, you don’t have to smile sheepishly, with no idea of what he or she just said.
9. SelfControl; SelfControl App is for students addicted to distractions that may hinder their studies; checking old photos of your friends on Facebook, posting and updating photos on Instagram, chatting on Whatsapp instead of revising for an exam. The App helps you block some of these sites for a set duration of time, and then deactivate them once you’re done with your lessons or exams.
10. Chegg; this awesome App helps students to join a network of text book owners. Rather than buying new textbooks each new semester, Chegg enables you to rent out your old books to one who needs them, and also rent new ones for the next semester. Just enter the title of the book, author, and if someone on Chegg has it, you’ll rent the book for a certain duration at an affordable cost; definitely better than buying new textbooks each time a new semester comes knocking.
11. Whatsapp; as a student studying far from home, you’ll need to constantly chat, and keep in touch with friends and family wherever they are. And without the luxury of a laptop to access Skype for a Voice Call, Whatsapp will easily help you out. This is one of the hot selling android apps. Share photos, music videos, and even voice calls from the comfort of your mobile phone. It’s fun, easy to use, but also addictive if one is not careful.

Conclusion;

Do you have all the above-mentioned Apps on your phone? Or are there some other important ones that we have missed out? Please feel free to share.

More resources

Top Back to School Apps for College Students

Top Summer learning Apps

About the Author:  Alyssa Sellors has been teaching English and Journalism for seven years. Currently she works for a number of online publications as a freelance writer and contributor.