Best iPad Apps for University Students - March 2013

A large number of university students have iPads and iPhones that they use for various purposes. A good number of these students use their gadgets to take notes and record lectures. All the same, only a few of them can get the most out of their devices. This is common because of the huge range of choices the App Store offers in many different categories. The huge collection of iPad apps does not however make it easy to dig out those useful apps that are built for students and other apps that may not necessarily be built for students but can be very useful during the university years. Protect Your Bubble, a specialist insurer of iPads, gadgets, iPhones, and mobile phones; has put together a list of top apps that can be very useful for university students.

Dropbox

Everyone who owns an iPhone or iPad should have Dropbox. If you haven't heard of the application, it can be described as a free service that allows its users to store documents in the 'cloud'. It's quite user-friendly and is integrated into a lot of applications including websites such as Facebook. As a user, you can install Dropbox on your iPhone, iPad or Android phone, and make it appear like a regular folder that you can use to save files. The application will sort out all your files making sure you do not have copies of a particular file filling up your storage space. With its cloud capabilities, you can store your most important files online which will ensure you do not lose them in case your mobile gadget is stolen or stops functioning. You can get it for free and there is a premium option available if you want more from the service such as additional storage space.

Goodreader

Storage of presentations and lecture notes is one of the most obvious things you should do with your iPad if you are a university student. The most common app for this function is iBooks. However, it does not allow a user to annotate or draw on their notes. For this to happen, you will need to get Goodreader. Another advantage of Goodreader is that it has an inbuilt Dropbox synchronisation making it simple to organise your files.

Evernote

Most students may have heard of Evernote. It is simply used to write notes during lectures. Unlike word processors such as MS Word, Evernote allows you to store your notes in notebooks rather than files. As a result, it is easier to look them up. Additionally, you have the possibility of pasting in rich media such as recordings, videos, and images. It also features cloud integration giving you access to your notes from any mobile device that has an internet connection. Finally, it has audio recording capabilities allowing you to record a lecture as you make notes.

Inkling

Inkling users would argue that the iPad was virtually made for Inkling. It is an application that makes high-quality digital textbooks that are very compatible with the tablet format. Apart from delivering textbooks in PDF version, it recreates them in a digital format that has an amazing result. Currently, some of the globally renowned textbooks are delivered through Inkling with embedded hyperlinks, fill-in-the-blanks, multiple choice questions, test-yourself images, comments from other students, audio, and video. Though they charge for the books, using the app is free. The difference between buying books in the print version and on Inkling is that with the app, you can buy the books by the chapter.

PDF Printer

From the information above, you have found that you can use Goodreader to highlight and annotate your lectures. For this to work, you will need to have them in PDF format. PDF Printer is the best PDF converter on any gadget. It is quite simple to use and is quite effective.

Kindle

Kindle is an app that is more suitable for Arts / Humanities students rather than science students. The main reason is that it has a wide library, but its platform is not suited for very graphical books. Due to its graphic nature, a medical or scientific book is best seen using Inkling. A good number of people often find it hard to read off a screen. They would prefer to read a paper book. However, with the note-taking and annotating capabilities combined with the ability to carry more than a dozen books in your pocket, reading off a screen could be a small setback.

If you are currently studying at university, own an iPad, and feel the need to use this piece of gadget to help improve your productivity, note taking and more, download the above apps but don't just stop there. Ensure that your iPad is loaded with apps that may help you through university. It's also worth checking with friends and classmates to see what apps they're currently using to help them through university.