Category Archives: App Tuesday

App Tuesday, social networks

Social App Helps New College Students Adjust to College

social app

Incoming college students go through big changes as they reshape their entire social circle. They just left all their friends from 4 years of high school behind them and they need a social app that is uniquely tailored to their new college life. Current social platforms don’t have any use on a physical college campus, especially if you don’t know anyone there.

Freshmen U™ addresses new college social environment

Freshmen U™ is targeted for just campus use, addressing specific college student bodies within the individual university settings. Freshmen college students now have their own social app that includes patent-pending augmented reality (AR) technology developed just for social interactions.

Students can meet and interact with other students just by using their username within the app. This allows them to get to know each other before sending out a traditional friend request. This no need to know someone’s real name to start a conversation, which is hard to do when you first arrive on campus. Students just download the app, pick their campus, and start to meet people. It’s that easy.

Designed to get new students to connect with other students

Our app is designed to get new students out of their dorm and start to connect with each other in real life on campus. Users can drop photos of themselves around campus as they walk from class to class or attend a football game, which others can now see through the app’s AR GPS ecosystem and they can rate or comment on these photos or videos. Think of Facebook meets Pokémon Go. The app encourages interaction and more face-to-face meetings around campus and does away with the awkwardness of making new friends.

Customized social interaction

In a quest for profit above all else, the big three social media platforms have ignored a very important demographic group of college students. We did not. College students need customized social interaction, and they want their digital media. We’ve found a way to give them both, with no ads and no unnecessary data sharing with 3rd parties. We are a small group of developers (3 to be exact) that wanted to build something fun but useful on college campuses. I think we did it! Students now have a way to digitally plaster their lives into the real world around campus. It feels like rebellion but is totally safe and secure.

App Tuesday, college planning, college prep

Apps to Make College Prep Easier

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appsMost parents feel their student’s smartphone is an extra appendage. Your student’s entire life is on their phone. They use it to stay in touch with friends (and you if you’re lucky), they use it for homework, for research, for gaming and just about every other task in their lives.

Why not add some beneficial tasks that can help with college prep and even safety? Here are some of my picks for apps that can help your student be more productive and even ease your mind a bit.

Apps to help with writing and research

What high school student doesn’t need to know how to properly annotate a reference source, find a synonym for simple words to spice up their essays, or do some research for term papers?

Apps to help your student with history

Whether you need to reference an article of the Constitution, find out what happened today 100 years ago, or look up some famous speeches, here are some apps that have got you covered.

Apps to help with math questions

Does math homework make you quake in your shoes? It did me. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the widespread availability of apps that today’s high school students have.  These apps should help both you and your student tackle those complicated math problems.

Apps to help your student improve their GPA

Instead of study apps, let’s call these “10 apps to help you get merit-aid scholarships”. Improving your GPA is the best way to qualify for merit aid, and the best way to improve your GPA is to study.

Apps to help with the college essay

One of the most dreaded tasks of the college prep process is writing the essay. Students have problems with essay prompts, being creative, and using proper grammar. As luck would have it, however, there are even essay apps to help with this task.

Apps to help with test prep

A good SAT or ACT score can translate into good merit aid. Your student should take studying seriously. These apps can help make it easier and they are FREE!

Apps to help teach your student about budgeting

A good budgeting app can help college students keep track of their finances and help them find areas where they can cut back. Most budgeting apps can cover the basics—this article will provide you with five budgeting apps that stand out from the crowd and explain how they can help keep a college student’s budget in order.

Apps to help students in critical situations

These apps can help students act during critical situations to go along with the conversations you should have with your soon-to-be college students. These apps won’t solve the problem, but they can help save a life.

For more information on apps that can help you and your student, follow this link for all the articles I’ve written in the past about apps.

App Tuesday, parenting

Watch Out for These Secret and Dangerous Apps

dangerous apps

One of the most surprising parenting moments for many of us happens when our sons and daughters morph into teenagers. Almost overnight, our sweet little ones, who once shared all their hopes and dreams with us, begin shutting us out of their lives. Suddenly, we are talking to closed doors and blank stares, grasping at anything that resembles the bond we used to share. This stage of development is tough on families for several reasons, but one of the most startling is the strained relationships between our children and us.

However, this shift in our family dynamics catches many of us off guard. As our teens desire independence and privacy we are often left behind, especially when we factor in their digital devices and smartphones. In fact, 70 percent of our teens actively seek out ways to keep us in the dark when it comes to their technology and social media usage. While we might be able to look at a child’s Facebook account, one area we should be concerned about is the world of secret and disappearing messages.

Secret and Disappearing Messages

Disappearing messaging apps are one of the newest trends to hit the social media scene and they keep evolving. These apps feature messages that automatically delete after being viewed. The amount of time varies depending on the app or settings, but they all promise that eventually the data will be gone. BurnNote and Snapchat are probably the most popular disappearing messaging apps that our children enjoy using.

Our tweens and teens enjoy using disappearing messaging apps, because they don’t keep a running list of all their activity, comments, likes, and friends like traditional social media giants Facebook or Twitter do. Kids are concerned about maintaining their digital footprints and view disappearing messaging apps as a convenient way to promote more authentic conversations. With these apps kids can stop worrying about creating a database of comments, thoughts, and activities that anyone can view or access.

Disappearing messages are one thing, but secret apps take privacy to a whole new level. Secret apps come in a wide variety of formats, but the premise is all the same. These apps create a benign cover that looks harmless to parents, teachers, or adults. On a phone, the icon may look like an ordinary calculator app. However, if you were to click it open, you would uncover a place to store information and photos you don’t want others to view. Often, kids will store sexts or x-rated images in secret apps.

Secret and Disappearing Messaging App Dangers

While disappearing messages and secret apps have some good qualities there will inevitably be some drawbacks to this technology. Unfortunately, the private and fleeting quality of these apps encourage our kids to make extremely poor content choices. These apps become perfect vehicles for bullying and sexting, because evidence of any wrongdoing disappears. Both of these offenses carry very real emotional consequences and have even been prosecuted by the authorities in court.

Although the lack of accountability and the threat of not being monitored is liberating, tweens and teens often forget anything sent over social media isn’t really private. While at first glance, this doesn’t appear to be possible with disappearing apps, children need to be reminded that everything digital has the potential to be retrieved, shared, or saved. Users can always figure out methods to save messages by using screenshots or other devices to click a photo.

dangerous apps

7 Essential Tips for Keeping Teens Safe

Thankfully, we are not entirely helpless. As parents, we can teach our children a few tricks and methods to safely enjoy disappearing messaging apps. Listed below are a handful of essential tools to overcome a child’s secrecy to keep them happily scrolling:

  • Teach social media etiquette
  • Keep all devices in common living areas
  • Prevent children from using phones in bedrooms
  • Have a child tell you if they witness anything that makes them uncomfortable online
  • Let kids know it is okay to say no to sexting
  • Monitor a child’s activity by friending them online or asking to see their accounts every now and then
  • Begin a conversation about the power of words

How do you keep your teens safe while they use dangerous apps?

App Tuesday

App Tuesday: Budgeting App for Students

 

budgeting app

It’s the summer before college and you watch your student spend money like a maniac. You feel like an ATM and you wonder how on earth she will ever manage her money in college. Will she accept multiple credit card offers and charge pizza and Starbucks daily? Will she spend all her work study money on entertainment? Will she call you weekly and ask for more money to be deposited to her account?

The best way you can teach your student about money management is to implement budgeting tactics the summer before college. And since they are “all about the apps” for every task from shopping to communicating to entertainment, why not add a budgeting app to their smartphone?

According to the creators of Bapp (a budgeting app for students):

It is also a growing problem for students to spend more than they anticipated on basic wants and needs, also known as discretionary spending. We’ve learned that college students’ annual variable expenses like coffee, snacks, meals, travel, entertainment, clothing, and online shopping have been steadily rising each year. Due to the extensive time spent on social media, advertisements continue to grab the attention of smartphone users and encourage more spending. Powerful marketing campaigns are targeting college students more than ever because of their impetuous and increasing spending power. Cumulative student discretionary spending is expected to reach half a trillion dollars.

With their app, students can:

  • Set and track your variable and fixed expenses each month
  • Quick view of how much money you have to spend for a specific category
  • Establish a budget for basic monthly necessities
  • Curb bad spending habits
  • Monitor and set a plan to eliminate your debt
  • Keep track of spending trends
  • Set up a savings goal for yourself
  • Get on the fast track to building wealth

Each week on Tuesday, I’m going to highlight a “must-have” app for your students. From studying, to safety, to budgeting, to organization. Stay tuned for more great apps to pass along to you student.

admissions, App Tuesday, college announcements, summer programs

Wheaton College Summer Program

 

Every day, I come across information that is helpful for parents and students. Recently, a representative of Wheaton College contacted me about a summer program for high school students and asked if I wouldn’t mind spreading the word about it. My answer: absolutely!

 

For the second summer, Wheaton College in Massachusetts is offering a four-week credit bearing session for rising juniors and seniors, Discover@Wheaton Summer College for High School Students.

Over the course of the four weeks, students will work with Wheaton professors (and its President!) in one of four courses: “Lunar Exploration,” “Innovation and Social Change,” “Medicine, Bodies, and Power,” or “The History of Popular Music.”

Borrowing from Wheaton’s website about the program, here is an explanation of how it works:

What is Discover@Wheaton?

Discover@Wheaton Summer College is a credit-earning, pre-college experience designed to give rising junior and senior high school students a taste of a competitive private liberal arts college experience. During this four-week intensive program, students will sample college academic life by taking a college level course, as well as student life by participating in campus activities and trips both on and off Wheaton’s beautiful New England campus.

What makes it different?
Wheaton College is an institution known for its close-knit community, small class sizes, and personal approach. Discover@Wheaton follows this model and more, with classes that are only taught by Wheaton’s finest professors, not teaching assistants or graduate students. Thus, students will interact and build relationships with top-notch professors who are experts in their fields of study. Furthermore, this year’s “Innovation and Social Change” course will be taught by none other than Wheaton College President Dennis Hanno!

What do I gain?
Transferrable credit
Not only will students earn a college credit (four semester hours) from Wheaton, but they will also get a chance to present and showcase their work with our final showcase event for parents, participants, and the Discover@Wheaton Faculty and Staff!

Connections
The time students spend at Discover@Wheaton will open them up to a world of opportunities! Not only will they connect with other incredible students from around the globe, they’ll also work with world renowned professors in a personal and lasting form. Plus, field trips within each course will connect them to individuals and institutions that are doing dynamic work in each of the four fields.

Additionally, Discover@Wheaton is lucky enough to be able to collaborate on many events with the U.S. College Advantage Program, a summer experience that brings international high school students to the Wheaton College campus for English language emersion.

A Chance to Discover
Mirroring the Wheaton Curriculum, Discover@Wheaton provides a nurturing, yet challenging environment for students to discover their passions, hidden strengths, and amazing opportunities that their futures hold through a dynamic mix of classroom work  andinspiring experiences.

The application deadline is April 18th. To be eligible for a special 30% discounted rate, interested students should reach out to the Coordinator for College High School Academic Programs, Jocelyn Saltzman, at saltzman_jocelyn@wheatoncollege.edu.

App Tuesday, college guidance, college planning

A New App to Help With the College Search: 4 Year Trip

 

app to help with the college search4 Year Trip gives users more than just information about colleges. GPS technology sends notifications about nearby events, users gain rewards for using the app, and searching for scholarships is always a smartphone away.

Attending the right higher educational institution takes much research and planning. 4 Year Trip, a new iOS and Android app created by app development team, Droiple, aims to take a lot of the stress out of searching for the right college while adding incentives for searching.

4 Year Trip, a new app to help with the college search, recently launched in Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store on February 15, 2015. The app offers many perks to those who use 4 Year Trip as their search tool for local and out of state colleges and universities. By using the app, users have access to website links, phone numbers and other campus information to over 3,000 colleges and universities, right on their smart phones.

Beyond basic research info, 4 Year Trip also offers tools for:

  • Finding nearby college fairs
  • Finding scholarships
  • Using the “Wall” to see what others are up to
  • Finding a future roommate

and much more.

College can and should be memorable – filled with classes, studying, campus events, building friendships and lasting bonds, and for most students, the college years are the experience of a lifetime. This is what 4 Year Trip wants users to have, an experience of a lifetime by using the app to assist with starting the journey through higher education.

“We created 4 Year Trip because we saw a need for students to be able to make better decisions about attending college,” states Justin Yuille, Co-Developer. “We designed 4 Year Trip so students could take their time researching while having a good time doing so.”

4 Year Trip’s GPS technology will notify a user of any university or college event that is happening nearby. For example, while passing a local campus, a notification may sound with information about a college fair.

To help students with their search, 4 Year Trip also has a section named ‘Get Schooled Videos’ directly within the app. Watching the videos helps students learn what it takes for finding, applying, and getting into one of the colleges of their choosing.

The Rewards section on 4 Year Trip allows users to earn points every day for check ins, shares, and posting photos. Points are redeemable for prizes like SAT Prep, coffee, gift cards, tablets, and more.

Parents and students who are interested in turning the search for the right higher educational institution into a more enjoyable and stressless time, 4 Year Trip can be downloaded in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

App Tuesday, college prep

iPad Apps for College Prep

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iPad apps for college prepCollege prep has certainly changed over the years. Twenty years ago you trudged to the library spending hours foraging through books looking for college facts, test prep, and scholarships. Ten years ago, with the internet explosion, you could do most of your research online and even apply to some colleges. Today, you can do almost everything online: search for scholarships, apply to colleges, study for standardized tests, and get essay help and organization. It certainly is a high-tech world.

The Changing Face of College Prep

I can’t even imagine what it will be like when my grandsons apply to college. If you don’t keep up with the times, you’re going to be left in the dust. With the explosion of apps on portable devices, the face of college prep has changed yet again. Companies are using apps to help students organize, write essays, study for standardized tests, understand financial aid, plan college visits and more.

BestCollegesOnline.com has compiled a list of iPad apps for college prep. I felt it was a good list and want to share it with you.

25 iPad Apps Changing College Prep

You might also like my College Prep App Recap post

 

App Tuesday, test prep

Test Precision: An App for Standardized Test Prep

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test precisionTest Precision is a new app for students preparing to take the ACT or the SAT. It helps students prepare for the test where they are: on their smartphones. As we all know, teens are quite addicted to their smartphones and making Test Precision a part of that existing routine and habit just makes perfect sense.

More than ever today’s high school student has increasingly less free time to study for the ACT and SAT in between class work and extracurricular activities.  Being able to access Test Precision on the way to school or in between activities is a major advantage versus physically scheduling and attending a test prep weekend class or hiring a one-on-one tutor. Test Precision also lessens the anxiety associated with cramming for the SAT or ACT by providing an ‘access anytime’ app so the student can chip away at their preparation over time.  This is in stark contrast to attending high intensity classes or lugging around a static, one-size-fits-all book and trying to pour through too much content all at once.

I asked Mohak Rastogione, a student who has tested the app, to tell me about his experience with Test Precision:

Q. Why did you decide to get help preparing for standardized tests?

I decided to get help for standardized testing because I honestly didn’t know what to expect on the SAT/ACT. I figured by having help in preparing I’d be a little more prepared come testing time.

Q. Why did you choose an app to help with test prep?

I was offered the opportunity to help test the app, so I didn’t necessarily look for Test Precision specifically. I ended up taking the offer for two reasons. 1) I wanted to see how preparing for big tests like the ACT/SAT could be done on the go (on my phone), and how effective it would actually be. The second reason was because I was getting ready to take the ACT and I hadn’t had any prior experience with the ACT besides self studying, so I figured this would be a good time to get some practice in while helping test the app.

Q. How has Test Precision helped prepare you for the test?

Test Precision helped guide me to which test I should take. The diagnostic test determined that I was a better fit for the ACT and my chances of a higher score would be found with the ACT.

Q. How long have you used the app and have you taken a test since you started using it?

I tested the app for around 4-6 weeks and I did take the ACT twice since testing the application out.

Q. What is your favorite part of using the app?

My favorite part of using the application was the ability to take practice tests/questions where ever I would go. Instead of lugging around heavy test prep books, my phone was/is always on me so studying/practicing for the ACT was much easier and flexible

Test Precision is available for free download in both Google Play and on iTunes. Individual SAT and ACT tests are available for a one time subscription fee of $39.99 per SAT or ACT package.

Ready to download

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.testprecision 

iTunes Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/test-precision/id872423917?mt=8

App Tuesday, college prep

A College Prep App Recap

 

college prep appHow would you like to find every app your student will need for college prep all in one location? Well, you’re in luck. On today’s App Tuesday I’m listing all my previous app posts with links to send you directly to the post. Whether you’re looking for essay apps, test prep apps, study apps or apps for organization, you’ve come to the right place–a college prep app recap!

Apps to Help Students Act During Critical Situations

Here are some apps to help students act during critical situations to go along with the conversations you should have with your soon-to-be college students. These apps won’t solve the problem, but they can help save a life.

8 Writing and Research Apps

What high school student doesn’t need to know how to properly annotate a reference source, find a synonym for simple words to spice up their essays, or do some research for term papers? These 8 Writing and Research Apps, should help with these tasks.

Apps for Learning Disabled Students

When you have a learning disabled student there is a whole other level of study, learning and social education. These apps provide parents of the learning disabled some tools to make their job easier and help keep their student on the path toward higher education.

8 History Apps for College-Bound Teens

Whether you need to reference an article of the Constitution, find out what happened today 100 years ago, or look up some famous speeches, here are some apps that have got you covered.

10 Math Apps for Students

Does math homework make you quake in your shoes? It did me. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the widespread availability of apps that today’s high school students have. Here are 10 math apps you can download to help with those ever-present math questions.

10 Budgeting Apps for College-Bound Teens

A good budgeting app can help college students keep track of their finances and help them find areas where they can cut back. Most budgeting apps can cover the basics—this article will provide you with five budgeting apps that stand out from the crowd and explain how they can help keep a college student’s budget in order. Here are 10 budgeting apps for your college-bound teens.

10 Study Apps for Students

Instead of study apps, let’s call these “10 apps to help you get merit-aid scholarships”. Improving your GPA is the best way to qualify for merit aid, and the best way to improve your GPA is to study. Here are 10 study apps that should help your student win merit-aid scholarships:

6 Safety Apps for Students

A pay phone or flagging down a police officer used to be our only defense against dangerous criminals and psychotic shooters like the gunman on the University of Texas campus years ago. But today, students are armed with a valuable weapon: their smartphone with safety apps—giving them instant access to authorities, parents and other students. Here are six safety apps you should arm your students with during high school and college.

8 Vocabulary Apps

Test time is upon us and it’s the perfect time to bone up on vocabulary for the standardized tests. And since your teens are never without their smartphones, here are seven vocabulary apps they will always have available to work on their vocabulary.

7 Essay Apps for College Prep

One of the most dreaded tasks of the college prep process is writing the essay. Students have problems with essay prompts, being creative, and using proper grammar. As luck would have it, however, there are even essay apps to help with this task.

7 College Savings Apps

aving for college is difficult, especially in today’s world. Add the rising college costs to the mix and your family finds it hard to save enough money to pay for college. It can be done, but it requires a commitment and the tools to make it happen. First, there’s the question of “How much do you need to save for college?” It might be shocking for some parents, but knowing what you need can help you plan. These 7 college savings apps that can help you plan for the future.

10 Textbook Apps

Any college kid or soon-to-be college kid needs an arsenal of textbook apps to help them shop for the best bargains, find the free ebooks and textbooks, and sell and trade when the semester ends. These apps should fit the ticket. But don’t wait until the fall of freshman year to download them. There’s no time like the present to create a folder and start adding these 10 textbook apps to your mobile devices.

6 Test Prep Apps

Some of these test prep apps are free, others are free to test, and some are paid apps. Knowing how important test prep is, use them to help prep for standardized tests.

Apps for College Visits

Imagine being able to be guided on a tour with your smartphone. Or being able to plan college visits before you go on them. Or being able to organize all your visits to search and find the schools by uploading photos to serve as a reminder of your visit. These apps for college visits can enhance your campus visits.

5 Free Apps for College-Prep Organization

College-bound students have so many tasks to complete and remember during the college-prep process. Luckily, there are apps for college-prep organization. This is great news because teens live and die with their smartphones. Having these tools at their disposal should help.

7 College Search Apps for Parents and Students

While this certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, these college search apps should help you and your student start and organize their college search.

App Tuesday

App Tuesday: Apps to Help Students Act During Critical Situations

 

apps for college studentsFollowing this week’s Mom-Approved Tips: Going to College May Be Deadly, here are some apps to help students act during critical situations to go along with the conversations you should have with your soon-to-be college students. These apps won’t solve the problem, but they can help save a life.

Apps to get help if needed

Circle of 6

iPhone and Android -Free

The Circle of 6 app is designed to help college students out of potentially dangerous situations. On the app, users should connect the phone numbers of up to six close friends. These should be classmates, roommates or trusted individuals in the area. In uncomfortable situations, users can safely and discreetly send a mass message for help. By pressing the car icon, users send out a text complete with your current GPS location. Your safety network will get your message and pick you up. Tapping the phone icon will send out a message that says, “Call and pretend you need me. I need an interruption,” to the six preset numbers. For true emergencies, students can call 911 from within the app. The app’s chat icon links users to information online about healthy relationships.

On Watch

iPhone and Android – Free

This personal safety app lets college students alert friends and authorities immediately in emergencies. There are six app functions: calling 911 and friends, calling 911 only, calling campus police, the “Watch my Back” setting (timed alert that must be disabled with passcode), contacting friends, and the “I’m here” setting. When you walk home and want to let friends or family know you’ve arrived safely, the “I’m here” setting does just that. The “I’m Here” text, call 911 only and call campus police functions are free with the app. The emergency friends, flashlight and alarm functions are available for a $2.99 fee. The complete package is available for $4.99 a month.

Apps to help deal with stress

Worry Box 

Android – Free

Have you ever wished you could put all your worries in a box, leave them there, and walk away? The Worry Box app may let you do just that. The app functions a lot like a journal: Write down your thoughts, anxieties, and worries, and let the app help you think them through. It will ask questions, give specific anxiety-reducing help, and can even direct you to help you reduce your worries and anxiety. It is all password protected, so you can feel safe sharing the details of your stresses.

Self-Help for Anxiety Management (SAM)

iPhone and Android – Free

The Self-Help for Anxiety Management (SAM) app from the University of the West of England can help you regain control of your anxiety and emotions. Tell the app how you’re feeling, how anxious you are, or how worried you are. Then let the app’s self-help features walk you through some calming or relaxation practices. If you want, you can connect with a social network of other SAM users. Don’t worry, the network isn’t connected to larger networks like Twitter or Facebook, so you won’t be putting your feelings on blast.

Apps to deal with depression

Operation Reach Out

This lifesaving app for iPhone and Android was developed by the military to prevent suicide. Recorded videos and menu options help users assess their thinking and reach out for help in crisis.

T2 Mood Tracker

Tracks symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress and general well-being.  Another excellent app developed by the Department of Defense National Center for Telehealth and Technology (see their complete list), for Android and iPhone.