College is a wonderful, stressful, fun and challenging experience all at the same time, but the right apps could make it even better.
In today's tech-driven world, things have become significantly easier compared to college before the Internet era. Students can now easily access virtually any information online, get digital books, set up reminders, add tasks to digital calendars, work on projects with others, share information and so on.
A slew of apps are currently available on the market to help college students make the most of the experience, boost their productivity and handle challenges in an easier and more organized manner.
Apple's iOS devices, i.e. iPhones and iPads, are a popular choice among college students, and a vast trove of applications are available for virtually everything. It would take forever to list them all, but here are the top 10 iOS apps for college students to help you through this period.
1. Evernote
Widely considered one of the best note-taking applications available, Evernote offers users an easy and efficient way to take notes with support for tags, iCloud sync, separate notebooks, photo taking, cloud storage and more. The app features great syncing capabilities, allowing users to access their notes from anywhere at any time, whether on their iPhone, iPad, Mac, PC or web. Evernote makes it easy to take notes and access them instantly, and it's available as a free iOS app.
2. Flashcards+
As the name itself suggests, this app helps users study for that big exam using digital flashcards. This version, Flashcards+, doesn't come with any ads and it's among college students' preferred apps for studying. Users can retrieve flashcards from both Course Hero and Quizlet, share decks of flashcards with others, keep track of the cards so you know which ones to study, add audio to them, or even sync your digital flashcards across several devices for easier access. You can download Flashcards+ for iOS for free from iTunes.
3. iTunes University (iTunes U)
Apple's iTunes U contains a slew of curriculum course materials from various colleges and universities. If you don't find the course materials from your very own school, you still have a good chance to find similar material from the same courses at other colleges or universities. The app offers text, audio and video content, depending on the course and the content creator, and it's available as a free download for iOS.
4. Study Buddy
This app aims to help users keep track of their breaks and distractions, recording the amount and duration of each break you take from a study session. Study Buddy maps out and graphs everything, so you can easily see just how often you took a break from studying. This way, students can determine if they take too many breaks, if they take too long to get back to studying, or if they make progress with their concentration and, in time, require shorter or less frequent breaks. At the same time, users can also set alarm notifications so the app notifies them when their break reaches one, five, 10, 15 or 30 minutes. Study Buddy for iOS is not available for free, but it costs just $0.99.
5. iHomework
The iHomework app helps users be more organized and can be a real asset in college, when you have to keep track of a slew of assignments, courses, readings, schedules, teachers and others. The app will help college students organize their tasks and materials and even allows them to set alarms for homework assignment or deadlines. This iHomework education app for iOS costs $1.99.
6. Wolfram|Alpha
Marketed as a "computational engine," the Wolfram|Alpha app is designed to handle users' factual search queries, offering various data. The software curates vast amounts of data from scientific, socio-economic, linguistic, mathematical, cultural, biographical and other segments. For scientists, mathematicians and the like, this app has turned into a great hit and continues to grow in popularity because it offers advanced features, including integration with Apple's digital assistant, Siri. Wolfram|Alpha can turn normal English queries into calculus, algebra, engineering or physics algorithms with no sweat, making things significantly easier for students. You'll have to pay $2.99 to download Wolfram|Alpha for iOS, but the vast majority of users say it's worth it.
7. Skype
The popular Skype app is a communications platform used and preferred by numerous people worldwide. The app requires an Internet connection and allows users to message, video chat or call others anywhere in the world. For college students away from home, Skype is often a cornerstone app to keep in touch with friends and family. The app has an impressive user base of more than 250 million people and is available as a free download for iOS.
8. Starbucks
With piles of material to study, little time and frequent hangovers, even non-coffee drinkers turn into coffee junkies in college. Few manage to survive college and stay on top of everything without caffeine, and the Starbucks app is widely popular among students. The app will help you easily find Starbucks locations where you can get your caffeine fix to pull off those dreadful all-nighters, and it also allows users to get special offers or information about the nutritional details of a certain beverage. If that's not enough, the app also allows users to pay for their drink using their iPhone for extra convenience. Starbucks for iOS is available for download for free.
9. Mint
College students are oftentimes broke, as it can get difficult to manage finances at that age. The Mint app aims to help users manage their money, categorizing and keeping track of their transactions. Users can add their account details and enjoy a variety of useful features, including graphs on how much they spend and on what, or bill reminders to ensure they don't forget to pay the bill for something essential, such as the Internet. Users can also set up budgets for how much they can afford to spend, and they can easily keep track of any money they received or spent. Mint is PIN-protected to ensure that all data remains secure, and users can also disable the mobile app via Mint's web page in case they lose their iOS device or someone steals it. Mint for iOS is available for free.
10. Duolingo
Last, but not the least, Duolingo can prove to be a powerful ally when struggling to learn a new language, which could be particularly useful for college students away for studies abroad. The app aims to make it easy and fun to learn a foreign language, offering well-structured content, lessons for offline learning, entertaining exercises and more. Duolingo for iOS is available as a free download from the App Store.
