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8 free smartphone apps to solve common college issues

 

These days, it seems as if there is a mobile app for nearly everything. Pulling an all-nighter and want some greasy food delivered to the library late at night? There’s an app for that. Need help finding a date for a formal? There’s an app for that too.

Apple announced earlier this summer its App Store contains more than 1.2 million different apps, and Android’s Google Play goes even further with 1.3 million apps. With so many apps to choose from, here are eight apps that can help you navigate college from a social, academic and health-related angle.

All of these apps are entirely free to download — great for college students on a budget — and are available on both Apple’s iOS App Store and Android’s Google Play.

1. SafeTrek

Problem: You’re walking home alone from the library late at night and wish there was some way to feel safer, since you live on the opposite end of campus.

Solution: SafeTrek users hold down a “safe” button when walking in dangerous or unsafe areas. If something unexpected occurs and the user stops holding down the safe button, the user has 10 seconds to enter a pin code. If a pin code is not entered in 10 seconds, 911 is automatically dialed and police are called to the user’s location.

 “SafeTrek allows you to proactively protect yourself without the heavy commitment of calling 911,” says Zach Winkler, the founder of SafeTrek. “We decided to tackle the problem that the campus blue light system was failing to solve … SafeTrek was developed by college students, for college students. “

2. GrubHub

Problem: You’re pulling an all-nighter at the library for a mid-term and find yourself craving sushi — or a greasy calzone. Unfortunately, the library cafe closed at midnight and it’s now 2:30 a.m.

Solution: Enter in your location and GrubHub will display a list of restaurants in the nearby area that offer delivery services. These often include late-night collegetown eateries that cater specifically to college students’ unusual sleeping patterns.

3. Todoist

Problem: You need a to-do list that keeps track of the due dates of your homework assignments and other tasks you have to complete.

Solution: Toddoist is a virtual to-do list that enables users to set deadlines, designate priority levels and categorize different action items. Users also have the option of receiving notifications to make sure tasks are completed before their deadline and splitting up longer, more complex tasks.

“Ten page paper due? No problem– using Todoist’s sub-projects and sub-tasks you can break big to-dos down into smaller, more manageable pieces,” says Brenna Loury, a Todoist representative.

4. Pushbullet

Problem: You’re in lecture and wish you could quickly move your notes, pictures and links from your computer to your phone without uploading several files and sending them as email attachments.

Solution: PushBullet enables users to quickly send files, links and videos from a web browser to a mobile device by simply pushing a button.

“Our service shines for college students because we enable them to do what they want (research or schoolwork) on the device they want, and then move it to another device whenever they want,” says Ryan Oldenberg, co-founder of Pushbullet. “Find an article that’ll be useful later? Send it from your phone to your laptop and it’ll be there waiting for you.”

5. Yik Yak

Problem: You’re wondering what is really on the mind of your peers and wish there was a Twitter-like feed where students on campus can anonymously publish their thoughts.

Solution: Yik Yak provides a feed of short, anonymous text posts — or yaks — from users in a 1.5 mile radius. “Yakkers” can upvote yaks they like or agree with and downvote those that they do not. The tidbits of gossip that have five downvotes are automatically removed.

“Yik Yak is a useful tool in which students can anonymously post and read about what’s new and exciting on campus,” says Mike Wiggins, a rising junior at Indiana University. “This includes news, events and gossip.”

6. Hinge

Problem: You have a formal on Saturday and need to find a date on short notice — our you would like to meet your significant other with the ease of never having to leave your dorm room.

Solution: Hinge is a dating app that shows you a “batch” of profiles of users in your nearby geographical location. If two people like each other, they have the option of messaging. Unlike similar dating apps — like Tinder — users are restricted to 15 profiles a day and matches are confined to individuals in the user’s extended network, so users are not matched with complete strangers.

7. Lift

Problem: You want to work out at the gym — or meditate — for 30 minutes each day and wish there was a way for you to keep track of your goals and stay motivated.

Solution: Lift provides a platform for users to enter in individual goals and also gives them the option to join a community of members trying to achieve similar goals. In the app, users are given the option to push a button when they have completed their daily goals and track their long-term progress.

8. Venmo

Problem: You’re out to dinner with your friends, and the restaurant you’re eating at does not split the bill. Unfortunately, you are not carrying any cash and only have your credit or debit card.

Solution: Venmo enables users to send and receive cash to Facebook friends and contacts via credit or debit card. Received cash can be stored as Venmo credit or cashed out to the user’s bank account.

“Venmo allows you to split the large group tabs tied to nights out in college without the ensuing fumbling for cash and awkwardness over standing debts,” says Kimberly Liu, a rising sophomore at Northwestern University.

Anuhya Bobba is a rising junior at George Washington University