Part of being a student today is making use of all the technological advances that are available to you. The honest truth is that there are hundreds of thousands of apps available to you, finding the one worthy of your bandwidth is entirely different questions. As such I have decided I may be able to help you all out a bit, by making a short list of 10 Great Student apps.

1. EverNote for your Organisational needs:

Every student needs a note taking app, Evernote is this app!

This apps allows you to take notes, review, find and tag. You can even index/tag images and include your handwritten notes (provide you don’t write like a crab). This capability allows you to take snapshots of your lecturers whiteboard or presentations, by indexing the snapshot you can add it to the notes as normal content.

EverNote also syncs with all your devices, which you can access without internet connection, handy feature:)  What I do love about EverNote is that there are several other apps that link or work with EverNote.  EverNote is a great Student app, definitely worth a serious checkout.

Other apps that links with Evernote:

  • Penultimate: An Award winning Handwritten app, linking in with EverNote.  Never search for a pen and paper again.
  • Nozbe: A great app that links with EverNote, ensuring you stay Productive
  • Drafts: It’s a easy way to capture and share text, linking with Evernote, making it more powerful.
  • Cloze: This is a personal organizing app, pulling your notes from various apps, including EverNote
  • Freedly: This app allows you to save and share intersting articles and media you may find on the internet.  Allowing you to find it later with your EverNote app, ensuring your general knowledge aren’t left behind.

EverNote has several different kind of app that link-in and build on each other.  Have a look at all the options EverNote can give you

Other Organizational Apps:

  • Any.do
  • iStudiez Pro: It’s designed specifically for keeping track of schedules, coursework, exams, grades, and all of those other similar little details that rattle around in a busy students’ brain.

2. Papers for your research needs:

This app is more geared for the graduated student, but I believe every student can reap some benefits from this app. The app basically allows you to have the world of academic journals and papers at your fingertips. Connecting with portals like Google Scholar, IEEE, JSTOR and online connections to many university libraries. Papers will save you tons of time, frustration and thousands of photocopies. Start your dissertation with an organised mindset.

Other Study and Research Apps:

  • Scribd
  • CliffsNotes – A great study tool for the language student, they also have resources for the remaining fields of study.
  • Duolingo – learning a new language, this may help.
  • Audible – An app that allows you to listen to your course material instead of reading. Saving tons of time standing in the queues.
  • Mathway – A great study tool for the math student
  • RealCalc Scientific Calculator – Don’t go buy a Scientific Calculator, rather download one.
  • iTunes U – This app connects to all leading universities, allowing you to learn any field from the best.
  • BenchPrep – BenchPrep delivers a personalized, game-based, intuitive learning experience across web & mobile devices.
  • Wiki Apps – Wikipedia has several apps to choose from, find the one best suited for your needs.
  • Lynda.com – A great resources for learning.  It’s worth a look.

3. DropBox for keeping everything safe:

Dropbox can be a lifesaver, for keeping everything together and keeping your backups up-to-date. Most universities will be moving over to a digital form of presentations and lectures, these you should upload directly to your dropbox account.  Not to mention all those valuable class notes and research material.

If you don’t have a dropbox account yet, get yourself one today!

4. Google Apps, because what else do you want to use:

Google drive offers you several handy apps, such as Google Docs, – Spreadsheets, – Calendar, – Forms, est. It is a great place to make sure you have everything you need in one place. Being cloud based you can access your drive anywhere, anytime. Google allows you to share your drive with fellow students in real time, making collaborations easy.

5. Mint for your budgeting needs:

Struggling to keep track of your finance should not be a worry anymore. Mint is a one-stop shop to keep track of your in’s and out’s. Everything is in one place, your budget, spendings, incomes, savings, and bank accounts. It also automatically categorise your banking and credit card transactions. All of this is easy to view in several creative ways like chats.

Other Budgeting Apps:

  • OrSaveIt –  An app that works on reverse psychology.  Interesting idea, have a look if it will work for you.
  • CheckPlease Lite – Looking for an app to split bills, this one can help.
  • GoodBudget or Mvelopes – It makes use of the envelope saving idea our grannies though us.  Making future budgeting planning easier.
  • Pocket Expense – This app has the normal budgeting requirements, but also that it allows you to set separate budgets.
  • Spend Today – Save Tomorrow – This apps takes your monthly budget and divide it into daily sections.  Recalculating every day what you can spend, that is until your next pay day.

6. Forest to keep you Productive

Forest is a “pomodoro” app, meaning it works in 30min intervals to try and keep you from breaking your focus. Ensuring you spend your 30min in being as productive as you can, by growing a tree. If you break the 30min concentration cycle your tree dies. The idea is simple, but it has shown more time to increase productivity and decrease procrastination than the latter.

The pomodoro technique is not a new concept and there are many apps with the same idea. Go find the app that works for you, but having a app to help with procrastination and focus is essential for any student and adult in today’s times.  You can even recommend this to your parents.

Other Productivity Apps:

  • SelfControl – This app allows you to block your own distracting websites, or anything on the web.  Ensuring your productive time is productive.
  • RescueTime –  This app allows you more than just blocking distracting site, but rather also give you a break time of how you have been spending your time.  If you a distracted and need to see progression, then this app is for you. A zhoosh-up productivity tool.
  • Focusbooster – Another pomodoro app, but with time tracking, ensuring you can go back and see where your time has gone.

7. Nudge For your Fitness and Health needs:

Nudge is also a very nice app for your fitness and healthy tracking needs. What I love about this app is that it syncs with several popular fitness apps already. It’s sociable in connecting with your friends, keeping track of all your fitness and health needs.

It syncs with:

Other Fitness and Health Apps:

8. GoConqr For your Study needs:

GoConqr is a handly little app with all it’s features. Another one stop shop for creating mind maps, flashcards, quizzes, slides, study planner and groups. You can share your information and summaries with all your mates, allowing them to edit or view only – your choice.

Many teachers also make use of this app in creating course material, definitely worth a check out.

Other study apps:

9. Quora and TED for your General Knowledge needs:

General knowledge is one of those things that we all need, but never seem to have the time to develop. The problem is because we think; when we find the time we will invest it in our general knowledge, but we don’t. We spend our little extra time with our friends, either drinking, dancing or playing games.

The secret to a general knowledge is to make the time for it.

Quora and TED is the perfect places to start. Quora allows you to actually ask questions about literally anything, some experts within the field will answer, allowing you to gain wisdom and knowledge at the same time. TED allows you to view any TED presentation about the thousands of topics they handle everyday, perfect to watch while having a lunch break.

I’m new to both, but I absolutely love the knowledge that is at my fingertips. No need to go find something interesting to read, Quora and TED will feed your general knowledge by simply making a pitstop at each everyday.

Other General Knowledge apps:

10. Other handy Student Apps

  • EasyBib – the app for when Bibliographies become to much of a nightmare.
  • Dictionary.com – You need to spell correctly and grow your vocabulary.  Use this app!
  • Instagram –  This app stays a favourite. Its super popular and everyone loves it.
  • Pinterest – Keeping your visualisation boards in one place.
  • WhatsApp Messenger – Keep talking for less
  • Fast Scanner – Allows you to snap pdf’s.  No more photocopies.

Please note that many of these apps may have an Apple and Android App version.  Please check, don’t take my word for the link:)

Written by Lizl Brink, Lizl is copywriter and designer based in Johannesburg, she is also a frequent contributor to the Mafadi blog, and as an Urban investor and rejuvenation shares a passion for urban regeneration, go check out her personal portfolio here

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