Apps—they’re a part of our fabric now. They are part of our DNA. And when you get down to it, there are some apps out there that make our lives easier. That’s all we want, right? To be a little more efficient, a little more mindful, and a little more organized. To have more money in our account at the ATM. And definitely to keep our atrocious spelling and grammar at bay.
I’m with you.
Our team went ahead and researched some of the best apps out there for students. We tried to find the best apps per student category that will actually make your student life, well, easier. We asked students, too, so these are all well tested. Here’s what we came up with.
Productivity
Focus Booster
This app is based around the Pomodoro technique that we’ve written about before. We stand by this. At the heart of the app is helping you stay focused for bursts of time without any distractions to get shit done. You set the amount of time you need to work on a project, and Focus Booster gets rid of your usual distractions and tells you when to take a break. It also tracks your time for invoices and reports for clients.
Available on iTunes, Google Play, and Mac and Windows.
Money Management
Mint
No lie, I used Mint to buy my first house. It worked. Here’s the thing about Mint, it categorizes all of your spending across your various accounts and let’s you know exactly how much you spent on each category at the end of the month (ie. entertainment, food, bills, rent, sports, avocado toast, school supplies, etc.) You then don’t have the excuse of, “I don’t know where all my money went this month!” You can also set monthly budgets, automatically pay your bills, and have money withdrawals into accounts automatically.
> Available on iTunes and Google Play.
Wellness
Headspace
Time to destress, man. As the app outlines, “a few minutes could change your whole day.” Whoooa, man. But seriously, there’s nothing better for a stressed-out mind than some solid meditation. The app walks you through guided meditation sessions that are designed to teach you the essentials of mindfulness. Give it a shot.
> Available on iTunes and Google Play.
Time Management
Anylist
Can’t keep track of your shopping? Don’t have a place for your to-do list? We got you. Check out Anylist. You can categorize all of your lists for your homework, shopping list and to-do lists in one place.
myHomework
Keep all your homework and assignments in one place—across all of your devices. Plugging in your info into the app, you can track your assignments, tests and projects, track your classes, and receive due date reminders. Stay on top of your grades. No excuses.
> Available on iTunes, Google Play, and Mac and Windows.
Collaboration
Google Docs
The new-age granddaddy of collaboration. Work with your study group on a Google doc in real time. Use the free templates for resumes and assignments. We use all Google Drive assets here at SLN to keep our content, spreadsheets, and photos in one place, with access to the full team. Google Docs are your friend.
> Available on all browsers here.
Essay Writing
Grammarly
Suck at spelling? Not sure what “their” to use. Forget about it! Just add the Grammarly plug-in and it will highlight your grammatical meltdowns and make suggestions in real time. I’m a professional writer and I use Grammarly religiously. Better writing = better grades. Take note.
> Available on Chrome for free.
Exam Prep
Quizlet
Start quizzing yourself. Essentially, Quizlet is the modernized form of flashcards with your close mate. With over 200 million study sets to pick from, you can learn to ace any course you want. You can also create your own study set, and then practice using games, quizzes, flashcards and diagrams to best fit your learning style.
Presentations
Prezi
We all know PowerPoint presentations. And they’re decent enough, but if you really want to wow your audience, give Prezi a shot. Take it from Harvard researchers when they say, “Prezi presentations are more engaging, persuasive, and effective than PowerPoint.” Use quick-and-easy templates that create more interactive presentations that move across the screen making it easier to showcase slick visuals.
Networking
Shapr
It’s Tinder for the professional world. Like if LinkedIn and Tinder had a baby, you’d get Shapr. Essentially, you add in your location and interests into your profile and Shapr will then show you potential professional matches. Once you match, you can then start messaging one another about business opportunities. Neato!
> Available on iTunes and Google Play.
Skilling Up
Skillshare
A true student never stops learning. Fact. Skillshare now boasts over 19,000 e-learning classes that you can take over the Internet, by watching videos. From how to mix music, to street photography to how to use Mailchimp for email campaigns, you can learn it all using Skillshare. After you take the class, take action with class projects to participate in and showcase your newly learned skills. Best way to learn is by doing.
*Opinions expressed are those of the author, and not necessarily those of Student Life Network or their partners.
Ryan Bolton
Ryan Bolton is the former Director of Communications (aka. Guy That Plays With Words) at Student Life Network. He has a beard that can nest a family of sparrows. And a dog—Hank—that has a slight attitude problem.
