What if I told you that the University of Bologna is the longest-running university in the world — established all the way back in 1088. A whole thousand years of continuous learning. Wild, right? But that wasn’t the first university, which was created by Fatima al-Fihri in the year 859 in Fez, present-day Morocco.
Though, it could be argued that the first university was at The Lyceum in Ancient Greece, where you’d rock up late (as usual) and try to shuffle in the back unnoticed as Archimedes went on his lever rant again (dude really thinks he can lift the entire world lol).
Or, if we’re feeling super contrarian, you could sit there and argue the first time we tamed fire and began sitting around, listening to the elders speak of the gods in the night sky was the first informal ‘university’.
My point is, humans dig learning, man. It’s what separates us from the Zebras. But for so long, all we had to aid us in our pursuit of knowledge was clay tablets, quill feathers with ink — lame things like that. Now though, now we have technology, and you, my dear friend, would be a right fool not to make the most of that little magic box in your pocket.
So, if you’re feeling inspired, intrepid, or just wanna pass your next class with the least stress possible, I’d urge you to heed the following list of apps that will make your time at university a right breeze mate, truly.
On with the show.
RefME
Okay starting with this one because honestly, correctly referencing your sources has to be up there with one of the most tedious and difficult feats known to humanity. Cards on the table, I never really learnt how to do it and mostly just winged the whole process.
But you don’t want to be like me, you want to excel, so therefore you should be making good use of this handy app that lets you use your phone’s camera to scan a book’s barcode and it automatically creates a correct citation in whatever style your pedantic professor demands. Love that for us.
Evernote
The ultimate note-taking tool. This is your handy locker for storing any reference material you may need to ace your next assignment, whether that be a voice memo, a picture of a marked-up whiteboard, handwritten notes, business receipts, the tears of your enemies — you name it, and Evernote can store it.
The Oxford Dictionary app
Do I need to explain this one? Look, kid, the big bad world of university is full of big words, and I’m not going to sit here and pretend I know what any of them mean. So download this app and set yourself up for some smooth sailing.
Microsoft Lens
This handy app lets you take pics of documents, blackboards, whiteboards, magazines, newspapers, receipts, your best friend’s diary — you name it — and converts it to readable text you can copy and paste straight into a word doc, or notes, or wherever you like to place your silly little text.
And here’s the best part — it can do all this with slanted writing, writing at an angle, and it even cleans up window glare and shadows too. Wild.
Google Drive
This may be obvious to some, but you’d be surprised by how many people are reluctant to trust the almighty cloud. I was one of them, but eventually, you gotta give in to that which you do not understand — and once you do, my word how your life will grow exponentially better.
It still blows my mind that I spent all of uni using Microsoft Word, when Google Docs was right there. Think of all the time and hassle I could’ve saved myself. Don’t make the same mistake I did, friends. Trust the cloud.
Habitica
Look, I get it, studying and doing assignments isn’t exactly the most riveting of activities — but Habitica has found a way to trick your silly little mind into thinking you’re playing a silly little game. An RPG game, that is, only the character is you. That’s right, you’re finally a star, kid.
Habitica encourages you to level up and improve your character’s (your) stats, not by doing in-game activities, but by completing real-world goals you set yourself. Essentially, next time you finish an assignment, or watch an online lecture, or refrain from egging your teacher’s car, you’ll experience the addictive thrill of levelling up. Fun!
Forest
Now for something wholesome. It can be hard to concentrate when the allure of all those shiny non-study apps are constantly calling out to you. Well, Forest has created a handy solution, by giving you a nice incentive to stay focused.
Next time you want to go deep in a study session, open Forest, and you’ll see a seed slowly sprout. The longer you keep the app open — and thus refrain from opening tempting apps like Instagram — the bigger your tree will grow, until you eventually have a lush forest — all entirely seeded by your dedication to study. But should your attention stray and you switch to another app, your forest will wither away. And you don’t want to contribute to deforestation, do you?
So go on then, download these apps and ace your next exam. And if you’re worried about data, well, don’t be, you fool! As students head back to study mode, Vodafone has kicked off the first semester of school and uni with a new batch of deals for students, offering discounts on plan costs and some handy data bonuses across its SIM only and handset plans.
Students who sign up or upgrade to the $45 Lite+ SIM Only or handset plan will only pay $40 a month and receive a pretty hefty 80GB of Max Speed data per month (for handset plan, device cost is additional).
And if you’re looking for a new device to take your productivity to the next level, check out the new Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. With its 6.8-inch screen and in-built S-Pen, it’s the perfect combo of regular mobile experience and a portable studying device in one.
Students can get the Galaxy S22 Ultra 128GB with 80GB of Max Speed data a month for $91.36 a month (which includes device cost and plan fees) over 36 months on Vodafone’s $45 Lite+ plan.
The offers are available in store and via customer care to customers with a valid student ID. Head on over to the Vodafone site to find out more.
Vodafone’s network will soon have greater reach than ever thanks to its landmark networking sharing agreement with Telstra, bringing 4G coverage to 98.8 per cent of the population and greater 5G connectivity through regional towns, holiday spots and highways.