Eight apps that will transform your student life

If three years at UCL taught me anything, it is that student life is not easy. At school, my teachers had warned us that we would not be spoon-fed. “Wait ‘till you get to university!” they would say, inevitably followed by the class bursting into laughter.

My teachers were absolutely right. It’s frighteningly easy to get overwhelmed with all the responsibilities you have as a university student, from remembering both your work and leisure to-do’s, to balancing revision for 3-hour exams and ample sleep. On the other hand, as students we’re lucky to be living in a ‘golden era’ of technology, and while companies like Instagram, Netflix and Candy Crush normally come to mind when the word “app” is mentioned, your sleep, organisation and finances could be transformed for the better through apps too. In this article I’ve rounded up the best apps to help you deal with university life (and beyond), from language support to procrastination prevention.

If you: Want to develop better sleep habits
Then try: Sleepcycle 
Sleep – and the lack thereof – is a universal issue. Students have to deal with both ends of the spectrum: insomnia and over-sleeping. Sleepcycle is one of the best known apps to help you address your sleep pattern. For over-sleepers, the app has an alarm feature which wakes you up when you are in light sleep, meaning you don’t feel exhausted when you do get up. For those suffering from insomnia, it allows you to track sleep and identify factors causing poor sleep quality.

If you: Need to focus, but get distracted by your phone easily
Then try: Forest
Focus is so important when you’re busy with important assignments, but isn’t it annoying when your phone suddenly pings with an exciting notification? This is where Forest comes in. Whenever you want to focus, you plant a seed in Forest for a set amount of time. During the set time, a tree will gradually grow from the tree- but only as long as you stay on the app. If you leave the app, the tree dies. Gradually you build a forest from the trees you plant and unlock new tree species, but the best thing about this app is that the virtual coins you spend on the app go towards Forest’s donations to tree-planting partners Trees for the Future, and real trees are planted on the planet. So you’re protecting your time and the environment.

If you: Want to better manage your money
Then try: Mint
Mint is the ultimate money management tool. The app allows you to link bank accounts, cards and bills, and puts them together to give you a clear report on where your money is going and what available finance you have to spend through categorising your expenditures. It’s great for creating budgets and keeping track of investments as everything’s in one place.

If you: Tend to forget events, assignments or other to-do’s
Then try: Tick Tick
Time management is one of the key skills you’ll need in life, but sometimes too many tasks can make you feel overwhelmed. Tick Tick helps you organise your life by categorising your schedules and tasks, and contains many features like breaking down tasks into sub-tasks to make the process of ticking off your to-do’s more simple. 
https://ticktick.com/ 

If you: Want to learn a language
Then try: Duolingo
Whether you’re taking modules in foreign literature or eager to brush up on your language skills, it’s great to have a tool to help you revise everything you’ve learnt. The two best things about language learning platform Duolingo are that it’s fun and it’s free. The platform is the most popular language learning tool in the world and allows you to choose from over 30 languages, including English.

If you: want to organise your study notes
Then try: Quizlet
Probably the scenario I hated most of all at uni was being in my exam and, right before including a piece of key terminology in my essay that I knew would impress my examiners… suddenly forgetting what it was. I wish I’d known about Quizlet back then! It’s a powerful study tool in which you can make virtual flashcards and revise for exams. As its name suggests, Quizlet allows you to ‘quiz’ yourself on your flashcards, and also (crucially!) memorise key vocabulary and terms. 

If you: feel that voice notes work better for you
Then try: Otter Voice Notes
Otter Voice Notes is probably one of the best rated transcription apps available, which comes in very handy when you’re doing interviews for assessment reports and assignments. Voice notes are displayed in a really organised way, helping you keep track of your work. The app’s free version gives 600 minutes of transcription, multi-device syncing and unlimited cloud storage, and its premium plan (6000 minutes) is 50% off for students. 

If you: need help better managing life’s everyday pressures
Then try: Positive App
The combined forces of UCL Student Support and Wellbeing and Positive come together in Positive App, a programme designed to inspire and support through insights from psychology, neuroscience and the medical sciences. The app contains helpful podcasts, videos, case studies and interactive tools, and allows you to track your progress along the way. Find out more here.