We’ve graduated from college. But, when you work at Localytics the learning never stops.
We’re constantly learning and trying out the newest apps. This week, we’re gathering insights from some of the smartest students we know about the must-have apps for anyone starting or going back to school this fall. Whether you’re a freshman, senior, or grad student, we have the details just for you. With over 2 million apps available, we turned to the experts to find out which apps students cannot do without.
Who’s getting an A+ in a world where many apps are failing? Let’s find out. Here are the essential apps for college as told by real life students.
1. Spotify – Music
Name: Sasha Krutiy
School: University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Field of Study: Computer Science
IPhone or Android: iPhone
What is the essential app every college student can’t live without in 2016?
Spotify
Sasha spent the summer interning with the Localytics Engineering Team and is currently travelling across the West Coast of America. We’re super jealous….
Why do you like this app?
Spotify offers a huge selection of music, letting you create playlists and check out your friends’ playlists. My favorite feature of the app is how simple it is to discover new music. You can have Spotify make a playlist based on any of your current playlists or listen to “Discover Weekly,” which updates every week with fresh music that matches your tastes. I enjoy having music play all day, and the ease of finding new songs is just right for me.
What makes this app so popular with college students?
College students like to listen to music almost all the time. We like to see what our friends are listening to and have playlists for the different things we do throughout our day. With Spotify, you can view friends’ playlists as well as see what song they are listening to currently with the “Friend Feed”. It is also very easy to create playlists and find new songs for them for each part of your day, if it’s for walking to class, hanging out with friends, working out, doing homework, or getting ready for a night out. You can have them all organized and easily accessible. Plus? Spotify provides a 50% off student discount for college students using premium. I am not one to pay for apps or services but I find Spotify Premium very worth it, and it is likely my most used app.
2. GroupMe – Social Networking
Name: Jacquie Bachand
School: Yale School of Public Health
Field of Study: Chronic Disease Epidemiology
IPhone or Android: iPhone
Jacquie spent this summer in Texas, interning at the MD Anderson Cancer Center. Jacquie also took some time away from saving the world to visit her family in California.
What is the essential app every college student can’t live without in 2016?
GroupMe
Why do you like this app?
It allows you to easily message large groups of people to make social plans or set up study groups.
What makes this app so popular with college students?
It’s simple to use and you can turn notifications on or off if you don’t want your phone buzzing all the time.
3. Sweat With Kayla – Health & Fitness
Name: Hannah Mairead Morse
School: Hamilton College, Clinton, New York
Field of Study: English Literature with a Studio Art minor
iPhone or Android: iPhone!
Hannah spent her weekdays working as a Merchandise Planning Intern at the TJX Companies’ Massachusetts HQ and escaped to Cape Cod during the weekends.
What is the essential app every college student can’t live without in 2016?
Sweat With Kayla
Why do you like this app?
It’s a fitness app that gives you short workouts that I can do at the gym, as well as recipes that are really easy to make. You can also track your progress!
What makes this app so popular with college students?
It’s hard to get motivated to go to the gym with classes, work, and socializing, but this app makes it a lot easier. My friends and I go as a group so we motivate each other, and the app is sort of like a game with challenges so I like opening it up!
4. Yik Yak & GroupMe – Social Networking
Name: Ryan Griffin
School: Colgate University, New York
Field of Study: Bachelor of Arts: Economics
iPhone or Android: Android
Here’s an action shot of Ryan competing at the “Localympics” during our company outing. This summer, Ryan interned with the Localytics Sales Team and spent time visiting family in New Jersey.
What is the essential app every college student can’t live without in 2016?
Yik Yak, GroupMe are the two big ones.
Why do you like this app?
I like Yik Yak because it’s a PG13 message board for college students where users can speak their mind anonymously. There’s also a lot of funny messages on there that pertain to a specific location (college town.) GroupMe is great for huge chats where you can see who is speaking without having their number.
What makes this app so popular with college students?
Yik Yak is popular as it has a lot of funny posts on it, and is great for getting unfiltered opinions about local events or efforts. GroupMe can be used for huge chats when you want to know who is speaking and not have that user just be a 10 digit cellphone number.
5. Twitter & LinkedIn – Social Networking
Name: Lauren Smith
School: The George Washington University
Field of Study: MA International Education
iPhone or Android: iPhone
Lauren works as a Program Coordinator for the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program at the Institute of International Education, DC. She’s a core member of the November Project, a fitness movement that was born in Boston (2011) and has spread to 29 cities across America.
What is the essential app every college student can’t live without in 2016?
Twitter, which I mostly use to keep up with the news, issues in the world, and organizations that are in my field. I also use LinkedIn often because I live in DC and everybody here is about networking.
Why do you like this app?
I love Twitter because it’s an easy way to keep up with the news and to be informed of organizations in my city and across the world. I often find volunteering opportunities, job opportunities, and people to meet via Twitter that I would not otherwise be familiar with if I did not have the app. Twitter is also great for being aware of any emergencies in the city, along with traffic reports/metro shutdowns/delays so I can plan my commute. LinkedIn is great because it gives me a way to remember everybody I meet at events. I can stay in touch with people through there, and to be honest it has landed me quite a few job interviews.
What makes this app so popular with college students?
Well, I am a graduate student, but I know that Twitter helps both undergraduate and graduate students stay informed when they otherwise would not be paying attention to the world. It is easy in school to get stuck in the school bubble and only focus on class, seeing friends, and socializing at the local bar. Twitter and other apps that are similar help students remain connected.
What Can Brands Take Away From This?
Being a college student in 2016 is all about one thing: being connected. This group of students value being connected with friends and classmates on social networking apps such as Yik Yak, GroupMe and Twitter. Music and fitness apps were the other two essential app choices. Both Spotify and Sweat With Kayla have successfully leveraged millennials desire to be connected with friends while listening to music and working out.
These apps have gained a competitive edge in a saturated app market by creating a strong community of individuals who are passionate about something and combining it with a great user experience and a platform to interact with one another. Students want apps that not only keep them connected, but promote a sense of community.
My advice to returning students as a recent college grad? Although social networking is awesome, some things are meant to be experienced in real life. Make sure to take a break from the virtual world every now and then to appreciate the beauty of college life. When you look back at your college years, you probably won’t remember the time you caught a rare pokemon in the quad or the night you binge-watched the entire season of Stranger Things. You’ll remember the late nights spent with your classmates & closest friends, laughing, dancing and having a great time. Afterall, that’s what college is all about!