The Ultimate Guide for Students - Netted
Guide • July 25, 2016

The Ultimate Guide for Students

14 apps and sites for navigating college and campus life
  • U Decide College

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    College visits have three goals: 1. Eat free food. 2. Get a t-shirt. 3. Flirt with your tour guide. Oh yeah, and choose a college. Make your visit more productive with U Decide College (iOS): Answer a few survey questions about what you want in a school, rate schools as you tour them, and it’ll tell you how closely they match your preferences.

  • Rosetta Stone
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    No. 1 rule: Don’t get caught at school without your books… or your Rosetta Stone app. Ace your language classes with Rosetta Stone’s intuitive lessons, speech-recognition technology, and more. With access to 24 languages and downloadable lessons in your pocket, you’ll skip right to the head of the class.

  • Occupy the Bookstore

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    Occupy Wall Street may be over, but Occupy the Bookstore is going strong: It scours the web to find you the cheapest textbook prices. Just install the Chrome extension and shop at your school’s online bookstore, and it’ll alert you if you can get a lower price elsewhere. You don’t even have to live in a tent.

  • The College Scorecard

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    In terms of life decisions, choosing a college is up there with getting married and deciding on a breakfast sandwich. Stay informed with The College Scorecard, a search engine from the US Department of Education. It lets you input your preferences and gives you a list of schools that match them, so you can find places you hadn’t thought of or quickly narrow your search.

  • Socratic

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    Freshman year of college makes high school look like puppet show day in kindergarten. Yeah, turns out you do need to study. Socratic (iOS) is your go-to when you’re stumped: Just snap a photo of your homework question, and it’ll break down key terms, explain concepts with videos, and scan the web for answers.

  • StudyBlue

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    Handwriting flashcards is so two-thousand-and-late (that’s a thing people say, right?). Ace that next art history midterm with StudyBlue. Write digital notecards and access them across many platforms. Or check out notecard sets from over 10 million student users.

  • RoverTown

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    College students might be broke, but there’s more cheap food out there than ramen in a cup: Check RoverTown to see where you can score student discounts at local retailers and restaurants by showing your ID, as well as promo discounts at online stores. You can still eat ramen every day, though, if that’s your thing.

  • RefME

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    Two words that strike fear into the hearts of students everywhere: annotated bibliography. Speed through your next bib with citation tool RefME. Scan book barcodes, drop in web links, or use the browser extension to manage and build your next bibliography in over 7,500+ styles.

  • Stop, Breathe & Think

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    Between acing your Chinese exam, trying to understand Heidegger, and keeping off that freshman 15, college can be stressful. Check in with your body and mind with guided meditation app Stop, Breathe & Think. Phew, feeling better already.

  • Chegg

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    That part-time job at the campus coffee shop probably isn’t going to float your textbook expenses. Use Chegg‘s textbook rental service for up to 90 percent off bookstore prices. Plus, you can forget the hassle of selling back at the end of the semester.

  • The Pledge

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    It’s a tragedy that many people experience sexual assault while in college. Be a part of the movement to change that by downloading The Pledge (iOS), and join your peers in promoting open dialogue around sex and consent between the people who are having it. It’s a small step, but an important one for fostering healthy attitudes toward sex on college campuses (and beyond).

  • Level Money

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    Living on your own can be exciting. Managing finances for the first time can be… challenging. Understand your bank account and learn smart spending with Level Money. Level monitors your spending, bills, and goals, and it tells you what portion of your account is “spendable.”

  • Focuslist

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    Writing papers at 3 a.m. is even less fun than it sounds. Use Focuslist, a daily planner and app that uses the Pomodoro technique to help you plan your time and work efficiently. More time for Pokémon GO.

  • Photomath

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    Move over TI-83 Plus. With Photomath (for both iOS and Android) your phone’s camera will solve math problems in real-time. Plus, get step-by-step instructions on how to solve and use the intuitive math keyboard when you don’t have your fancy calculator on hand.