Student Blog: My Most Frequently Used Apps (Tools That Guide Me Through School)

Hello readers! For all your time management and organizational needs, I've made a list of 10 apps on my phone that have helped me to coordinate my plans and handle my course load, responsibilities, to-do lists, etc. during my first year of college. Without the following apps, which I've used more in my fall and spring semester than I ever had before my freshman year in college, I'd be much more of a mess than I already am. So, without further ado, let's look into this. 

Notes

If you're a returning reader, you would already know that I've  talked about the Notes app in multiple previous blog posts of mine.    I've always used the Notes app, even before college, to make to-do lists, checklists, agendas, supply lists, jot down thoughts, etc. but can't even recommend it more now that I'm a college student. I have a feeling the Notes app will be a staple on my phone forever. This isn't really so much of an app to download because it comes downloaded automatically on your phone, if you have an Apple or Samsung phone, but more so one that I simply recommend you use more frequently. If you somehow don't have a note-taking app downloaded on your phone, you may want to check it out because it definitely assists you in the task of organizing yourself. 

Reminders

This is another app that exists basically automatically on most phones. I can tell you that I have never used the Reminders app more than I have this year. My favorite thing about this app as an organization tool is, if you have your notifications turned on for this app, you can alert yourself to complete a task you may have otherwise forgotten about. This sounds like a completely obvious and simple idea but if you easily forget things/have a busy schedule, you may want to invest some attention to your Reminders app. 

Calendar (particularly the Apple version of the Calendar app but I've also used Google Calendar, etc.)

This one is such an obvious choice but it's just easy dubs at this point. The Calendar app will help you keep track of your plans, obligations, appointments, school events, homework due dates, performances, etc. and, like the Reminders app, you can set up an alert to appear on the day of the event (or further in advance) so you can do your best to not forget about your commitments. Also, I like to use this app to keep track of friends and family members's birthdays! 

Canva

This is one app that I never had on my phone before coming to college. Most recently, I've needed it downloaded because I AM Marketing Chair for an on-campus organization that I'm involved in so I've had to make graphics/ads on Canva and submit them places through my phone fairly quickly. Canva is also something to always keep in the back pocket because it is good for making resumes, presentations, finding free images online, etc. which sometimes you need for personal reasons and assignments in college. 

Venmo

Again, I have never used this in my life as much as I've used it in college. It is the easiest way to transfer money between people and pay for things besides cash (I think it's even easier to use than cash). I feel like most people use online payment options like Apple Pay to get through life these days so Venmo is just one of those things that is frequently used by college students. If you are not in college yet and don't have Venmo, Apple Pay, or any similar online payment app, you may want to set that up before going to school. 

Music Notes

This app is more for my theatre/vocal majors but I downloaded the Music Notes app to have easy access to my sheet music on my phone, be able to send PDFs of my music to my vocal teacher during lessons, transpose my music on a whim, etc. Basically, if you buy and print sheet music often, this app is a good one to have! 

Doordash

Now, is this app the most essential one on the list? Not exactly. However, Doordash is a good app to have downloaded when you need a late night treat or ran out of meal swipes for the week. I love to eat so Doordash is definitely one of my favorite apps on my phone right now and luckily, where I go to school, there are a lot of decent restaurants around to choose from! I feel like most college students are ordering take out at some point or another so this app is one to embrace I guess. 

Zoom

Although I haven't used Zoom as much as I did during the Covid era, I still need it on my phone because sometimes I have to do a voice lesson over Zoom... I've used Zoom for online job interviews, school meetings, classes, etc. To be honest, I don't think Zoom is going away anytime soon so this is one app you should have on your computer (at least) in college. 

Google Photos (and Google Drive/Gmail/Google Docs, etc.)

Before I explain this one, you may as well download the entire collection of Google apps onto your phone because I have used each Google app on this list quite a lot during my first year as a college student. Google Photos was the newest addition to my downloaded apps because of the sole reason that I ran out of iCloud storage on multiple occasions throughout these past two semesters. Let me put it this way, you are in college and making a lot of memories with your friends. Taking pictures and videos is an important part of making memories today so I realized pretty recently that I needed somewhere else besides my camera roll to keep all of my favorite photos and videos safe. Therefore, Google Photos has helped me keep my media organized without totally clogging up my Camera app. The other Google apps on this list are just additional suggestions of apps to download on your phone for school. I use these apps on my computer often and sometimes just need that on-demand access to them which having them on my phone offers me. 

Voice Memos

If you are a theatre/vocal major, I'm sure you use your Voice Memos app as much as I do. However, even if you aren't using Voice Memos to record your singing lessons, this app can be beneficial when you are studying. Sometimes I use voice memos to record myself reading information aloud that I have to remember for a test or presentation and I'll just listen back to the memo to help myself review. Try exploring ways to make Voice Memos work for you!

A Bonus App for Actors: Run Lines With Me

I learned about the app Run Lines With Me this year and it has been such a great tool in helping me learn lines that I've needed to memorize for shows, my acting classes, etc. Although this app doesn't apply to everyone, for my actors out there you may want to invest in it. Basically, what you do with it is, you record a voice memo of yourself reciting all the lines in a particular scene and hold a button down when you are saying your lines so the app can save which lines you need to memorize. Then, you can play the recording back and leave gaps in the recording when you have a line so it is easier to memorize what you need to memorize when practicing. In order to use the app without limited recordings available, you do have to pay but the fee is very small and you can use it for free up to a certain point to see how you like it. I pay 1.99 a month to make as many recordings as I want on the app and it works well for me. Something to know when you download it from the App Store is the icon for it is green and has a white comedy mask on it. 

That's all I've got for this post. Thanks for reading!