Productivity Apps And Gadgets for College Students Everywhere (guest post)

Productivity Apps And Gadgets for College Students Everywhere



Learning how to be productive and work efficiently, is one of the biggest trends of the year for business men and women this year. This trend has even passed on to many college students as they try to juggle schoolwork, jobs, volunteering commitments, etc. Listed below are some of the best apps and gadgets that college students can use to up their productivity during the craziness of their semester.


Any.do

Any.do is an app that can be used to organize all of your tasks into a very stylish to-do list. The app is convenient because it is simple to use, and can be synced across all of your electronic devices. Students can even use their voices to create tasks when they are in a rush, or on the go. As tasks are entered they can be edited with different priorities so that your tasks are completed in a timely manner.


Dropbox

Students can use dropbox to upload all of their important course artefacts into one place. Dropbox allows users to upload files, videos, pictures, etc. into an online catalog. This eliminates the fear of losing work due to a crashed computer or other technical difficulties. Dropbox only needs an internet connection to work.


Scribd

Scribd is one of the largest libraries of documents and books online. This online database contains over a million files that can help with your studies. These files are uploaded from people all over the world and are categorized by topics for easy searching. Within Scribd, students can create personalized libraries that contain notes and books they need to use.

EasyBib

One of the hardest parts about writing a college paper is correctly citing and annotating your sources. EasyBib is designed to correctly create a list of citations for you. Citations can be created in MLA or APA style format. EasyBIB is available in app form, and also online. The app has a search feature that lets you look for your source. Once the source is found the citation is automatically done for you. The citation can then be directly copied to your bibliography.


Studious

Studious is an app that assists students with remembering the correct date and time for quizzes and exams. It also reminds students of important homework deadlines, as well as class schedules. Students just need to enter any information about their class, professor, and deadlines and the app will help them remember.


Evernote Moleskine Smart Notebook

With this gadget, notes can be taken with pen and paper and then translated digitally. The notes are translated using the page camera on the Evernote app. The notes are then stored within the app which gives you a multitude of supplies for customization. The notes can be synced across multiple devices for easy access.


Otterbox Charger

The Otterbox charger is perfect for the college student with long hours. The case can charge your phone while you are on the go. It contains the power to extend your battery life more than twice of the normal battery life. Once your phone is at a certain level it automatically stops charging in order to save battery.


External Hard Drive

An external hard drive is used to backup any files, photos, and other artefacts that you work on. If anything happens to your computer, you have your external hard drive as a form of insurance for your work. External hard drives are normally fairly inexpensive and light. Some hard drives can also be used with mobile phones as well.



Many college students have felt that the apps/gadgets mentioned above have helped them to minimize distractions, keep track of their work, and get through student life more conveniently. In addition to these apps and gadgets there are also different web extensions that can assist students in the same way.



Related:

Evernote for Education

My Favorite Resources for Teachers and Students















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Successful College Student's Pyramid - tips and ideas

College students, and high school students for that matter, have a lot of things to organize and prioritize. School work, classes, projects, homework, jobs, sports, relationships, parties, fun, sports all take time and effort. Below is an infographic that gives some information and tips and ideas on helping students manage their time, get organized, and prioritize things to be successful.




Presented By: Online Colleges

Zinch - college admissions and search help for students

 

Zinch is a free service for students in high school applying to college. Students can connect with over 700 colleges that participate with Zinch, create a profile of themselves on the site for colleges to see, and even get information on financial aid and scholarships.

Some of my students have used it before and found it easy to use and helpful in their college search and application process.

nextSTEP magazine and site - for life after high school

nextSTEP magazine is a great resource for high school students. The magazine itself is not free, although many schools get bulk subscriptions. Their website, http://www.nextstepmagazine.com, does have a lot of free resources for students.

Their tagline is "your life, after high school" and the magazine and web site have advice and information on careers, college planning and more. College search, college planning steps, career descriptions, articles on college life, careers, how to be successful in college, and much more are all on the site.

Our school has a bulk subscription, so the students can pick up a copy in the counselors' offices. Many of the students prefer to just go to the web site. The site has more detailed information than the magazine, along with videos and links to other resources. The site does has all of the articles from the print magazine.

This is a must have resource for high school students.

College Necessities 1988 vs. 2012

In 2009, I wrote an article entitled "College Necessities 1989 vs. 2009" and compared what I had and needed in college back then, to what college students needed in 2009. I decided to revisit and update that for 2012 to see what has changed.

I went to college from 1988-1992, at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Technology has changed a lot since then and so have student needs at college. I thought it would be fun to compare the needs (and wants) of a college student in 1989 and now in 2009.

1989:3.5" floppy disks for saving your work from the computer lab
notebooks - lots of them
3 ring binders to organize notes and handouts
graphing calculator
Walkman
Tape recorder (record lectures)
Pens and Pencils
Highlighters
Post-it Notes
Stereo
TV and VCR
Video Game console
Telephone for room (and an answering machine)
Backpack
Books (leisure and reference)

Camera

Planner and Address book 

2009:Flash drive for backup
Laptop with CD/DVD drive and external speakers
Smartphone
Some notebooks and pens
Backpack

Now let's see what has changed. In 2012 you need....a smartphone 

(and maybe a tablet/laptop for viewing things on the bigger screen. Typing can be done with a bluetooth keyboard and your smartphone if you really wanted to. )

That's it. No more flash drives (cloud storage to the rescue), don't really need a notebook (handwriting recognition on smartphone/tablets for math and science), and who needs a backpack when all of your textbooks are electronic and on your smartphone and tablet? Your smartphone does pretty much everything now. 

Heck, as an educator I only bring my smartphone back and forth to school with me. (Read more about that HERE).

Amazing how technology changes things. I think about how Social Networking must have changed the whole dynamic and communications at college. How the internet and WWW is so much more now (it was just text, newsgroups, email, and some FTP back then). Text messaging, smartphones and apps, streaming media, online research, online help groups, online class resources...it's just amazing.


What are your thoughts?

Related:

Android Smartphone and Apps I use as an educator

Cloud File Sync/Storage Services

Social Media in Education

Unfettered by Stuff - or "Why I don't lug stuff home every night"

Free booklets with high school and college success tips for students

Barcharts is a company that prints up those colorful laminated quick study booklets you see at the bookstore and even supermarket. I've purchased a few over the years (Physics, Computer, Accounting) and found them to be very useful. They have quick study booklets on almost any topic from Biology to Physics to History, Economics, Cooking, Computers and much more. Different titles come different sizes, including full size (8 1/2" x 11"), pocket size, poster and more. They average about $6 each.

They also offer some free quick study booklets on some topics that are very useful for educators and students. The ones that I always share with my students are: Keys to High School Success, Keys to College Success, and Surviving the College Ride. They all include very useful tips on studying, time management, how to get help, and much more. They are all available as FREE PDF file downloads.

There are also some fun free ones including Stupid Jokes, Umpire and Referee Signals, and Ramen Noodle Recipes.

Share this with your students.

Transitioning to College - Helping students Succeed - college library help

Transitioning to College Helping You Succeed is a site that has some great resources and tips to help students go from high school to college successfully. Specifically, it deals with the differences between libraries at the college level.

There are educator resources and activities to due with students to help prepare them and there are student learning modules that follow two college freshmen as they learn tips for success.

College Tips from Google - great resource for students

Google has added another great education resource to it's portfolio, College Tips.

College Tips has tips, products, and services to make life easier for college students, and college bound students. This is a great site for high school students applying to college, current college students, and college seniors starting their job hunt.

There are lots of tips and students can share their own tips with each other.

Some of the tips: getting organized, staying on schedule, having a professional email address (vs. Imawesome etc.), campus guides, search tips and much more. The tips are organized by category: "Prospective College Students", "Current College Students", and "College Seniors".

There are some great tips and ideas here. The tips from other students are excellent. I wish I had some when I was going through all of this college stuff.

Share the site with high school and college students you know!

OneSchool - app for college students - connect to school's resources

OneSchool is a very cool app I just learned about from Lifehacker (and awesome site with resources about everything.)

OneSchool is available for iPhone, Android and Windows Phone 7. It's free, and allows students to connect to their school's resources. For example, there are campus maps, bus schedules, nearby restaurants and activities, news, chat, course info and schedules, and even a directory of students and staff.

There are 101 schools currently set up on OneSchool, including some big name schools, and you can even add your school to it.

There is also a page for administrators to get their school into OneSchool.

This is a great app for students, and even faculty and the schools themselves.

From the OneSchool web site:

Top 10 Reasons to Download OneSchool:10. You will never miss the bus again.9. You don't have to be that kid who walks around carrying a map.8. Find food fast.7. The chat is (not so secretly) a party finder – cheers!6. The campus news is updated in real-time.5. Get classmate or professor contact info through the Directory.4. Everything about your education is expensive, except for this app.3. Easily access student club info.2. Instantly access all course info and schedules.1. Have all your school has to offer at your fingertips!

The app was developed by some Penn State students who noticed that they needed an app like this. Very cool!


Check this app out and share it with your high school seniors and any college students you know. I wish I had this when I was in college. Heck, I wish I had laptops and smartphones when I was in college. Or cell phones even. It was always fun to walk all the way across campus to have a message on your answering machine that your group was meeting two feet from where you just came from. In the rain.

College Necessities 1989 vs. 2009

I went to college from 1988-1992, at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Technology has changed a lot since then and so have student needs at college. I thought it would be fun to compare the needs (and wants) of a college student in 1989 and now in 2009.

1989:

3.5" floppy disks for saving your work from the computer lab

notebooks - lots of them

3 ring binders to organize notes and handouts

graphing calculator

Walkman

Tape recorder (record lectures)

Pens and Pencils

Highlighters

Post-it Notes

Stereo

TV and VCR

Video Game console

Telephone for room

Backpack

Books (leisure and reference)

Planner and Address book

2009:

Flash drive for backup

Laptop with CD/DVD drive and external speakers

Smartphone

Some notebooks and pens

Backpack

That's all.

Think about it! The Smartphone is their phone, Walkman, graphing calculator, note taker, planner and address book, books (eReader), and lecture recorder. The laptop is their note taking tool and planner, DVD player, TV, eReader, reference, stereo, video game console and more. The notebooks and pens are for classes where the laptop doesn't work well for notes (like science and engineering) - however, a tablet PC with handwriting notes software would work for this.

Packing for college is much easier now. No more boxes of books and notebooks, stereo and box of CD's, boxes of VHS tapes, VCR, TV...ugh. Now, one backpack could carry everything but their clothes.

I'm jealous! I remember lugging multiple notebooks and textbooks around and a planner. Lots of floppy disks for my data, and more. And forget trying to organize a party or how to meet up with other students. Cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, and more have made things so much different now.

What are your thoughts?

nextSTEP magazine and site - after high school...

nextSTEP magazine is a great resource for high school students. The magazine itself is not free, although many schools get bulk subscriptions. Their website, http://www.nextstepmagazine.com, does have a lot of free resources for students.

Their tagline is "your life, after high school" and the magazine and web site have advice and information on careers, college planning and more. College search, college planning steps, career descriptions, articles on college life, careers, how to be successful in college, and much more are all on the site.

Our school has a bulk subscription, so the students can pick up a copy in the counselors' offices. Many of the students prefer to just go to the web site. The site has more detailed information than the magazine, along with videos and links to other resources. The site does has all of the articles from the print magazine.

This is a must have resource for high school students.

Zinch.com - Free College service for students

Zinch.com is a free service for students in high school applying to college. Students can connect with over 700 colleges that participate with Zinch, create a profile of themselves on the site for colleges to see, and even get information on financial aid.

Some of my students have used it before and found it easy to use and helpful in their college search and application process.

Egiate - College search and info

Egiate is a site that takes college search a little further. Instead of just having some basic info on a college and a link to the school's web site, Egiate takes things further. It has those basic things, but then adds in better search options, maps, satellite photos of the campus, 3D buildings (if available) and much more.

They are still building the site and working with schools to incorporate more information. Searching can be done by location, major, size, and more and there is information on admissions, majors, students, athletics, and more on each school.

Virtual, LIVE, College Fairs

Not every student can visit every college they want to. Not every college will show up at the local college fair. College fairs can be noisy, crowded, and difficult to navigate. Some students get too nervous to talk to college reps at a fair. So skip them and try a virtual, live college fair instead.

Educationxpo and CollegeWeekLive are two sites that I found out about today. They both have upcoming, live on-line events and both have a large number of colleges participating. What is nice is that college reps will be online live to answer questions from students. There is a lot of information available about each college and the two sites both have other resources and references available on them.

Educationxpo has a live event coming up on November 12th, 2009.

CollegeWeekLive's next live event is November 4-7, 2009.

Take a look around the sites now, share them with others, and register for the FREE events.

Two sites to share with high school students

These two sites have some great tips and advice for high school students.

10 Things I Wish I'd Known in High School

Top 5 Things to Learn Before you go away to College

I will be sharing both with my students. I feel that both give some great, practical advice to students and are well worth the time to share these with them.

College Resources for High School Students

Here are some resources to share with high school students:

The Princeton Review has a great site about colleges, majors, and careers. This site can help students explore career and college options so that they can better plan high school and college.

Unigo is a great resouce for college bound high school students and college students. The site has information on colleges, college admissions, financial aid, college life, tips for success, internships, and more. It is one of those sites that every college-bound, or college student should visit.

I really liked this article entitled "What I'd Wish I Known About My First Days on Campus". It has very practical advice for transitioning into college and surviving your freshman year.