Us students are on our phones all of the time, so you might as well be doing something productive with your screen time (and no, Tinder doesn't count). We are kicking off the school year with our recommendations for the apps you need this term. These are the ones you need to organize your life, pass your classes and not go broke while at UBC. It is by no means an exhaustive list, but it's a good start. Let us know what we missed and what your favourites are.
School
The UBC app
The UBC app helps students stay on top of events and safety alerts, and offers a direct portal to the SSC. Be sure to check food service hours and look up which campus eateries take meal or flex dollars. Chances are you may only use this app for the campus map. Check your ego and look up which Buchanan building your class is actually in. It’s okay, we’ve all been there.
Rate My Professors
Yeah, you’ve probably heard of this one, but that's because it's a classic. If you haven't heard of it, the app allows students to give their profs number ratings and written reviews. Find out whom to avoid, whose classes to take and who has a chili pepper. If you don't want the app, do yourself a favour and at least get the chrome extension so you can see ratemyprof.com on the SSC.
iStudiez
Keep track of your assignments, grades, course schedule and all of your club meetings all in one place. For $2.99, upgrade to the pro version and have the app remind you to start assignments, hand in papers and when all your exams are.
Google Drive
Drive is great for writing essays as well as creating spreadsheets and presentations. It’s a staple of group work, so most people have an account and know how to use it. Plus, everything is saved automatically and stored online. That means you won't have to worry if your computer dies and deletes your term paper four hours before it’s due.
Organization
Any.do
Perfect for the list-making, overcommitted student, this app helps you organize and rank tasks while letting you break them down into smaller steps. Sync it across devices, set reminders and automatically set recurring tasks. You’ll never forget to call your mom again! You can upgrade to one of the paid premium services for the whole experience. It's $2.08 per month for one device or $2.24 per month for all of your devices if you pay for a full year.
Evernote/Penultimate
Evernote is the ultimate note taking app. Organize everything from class notes, essays, group projects and more in one place. You can also annotate documents, use it as a word processor, chat with group members and build flashcards. If you download its accompanying app, Penultimate, to write notes on a tablet, Evernote will store and organize them for you. Plus, the whole database is searchable, so you won't have to flip through notebooks for half an hour while studying.
Finish
Then 16-year-olds Ryan Orbuch and Michael Hansen were just trying to make a checklist app to help students with procrastination. What they ended up with exploded in popularity, featuring coverage by TechCrunch, Fox, CNET, the Huffington Post and more. The app is a checklist for procrastinators and allows you to organize your life by when things are due, how urgent they are and how important they are.
Money
Mint
Anyone moving out for the first time could do with some budgeting help. Tracking your purchases and sorting them by categories like entertainment and groceries, Mint lets you add multiple accounts to keep your spending in check — because we all know that drawer full of receipts won't help you.
Wally
Like Mint, Wally helps you make sure you avoid getting broke. You can track expenses by categories or day of the week. The app has a long list of pre-made expense categories and allows you to add your own. Plus, the app can keep track of your income. Set yourself a monthly budget and Wally will show you how much of it you have already used. The app even shows you how much money you'll save if you keep on your spending trajectory. It can also scan receipts and use your location to help keep track of expenses for free.
Splittable
Living with roommates? Do your friends always owe you money? Splittable allows you to track who owes who what in a house or friend group. Don't let your roommate rip you off by not paying for the 100 rolls of toilet paper you bought or let your friend who will “pay you back next time” get away with never paying you back.
Vendchat (aka Spocket)
Developed by UBC students last year, Vendchat simplifies the process of buying or selling second-hand textbooks, bikes, clothing, plants, coffee makers — you name it. Snap a pic, post it and chat with other users within the app. Maybe you’ll get to avoid all those messy buy/sell Facebook groups.
Vancouver
Transit App
Whether you’re Vancouver born and bred, or it’s your first time in the Pacific Northwest, the aptly named Transit App will save you time and confusion navigating the city. Whatever your preferred mode of transportation — train, bus, or car2go — this app will simplify your explorations, giving you departure times for nearby transit lines, offering alternate routes and notifying you of disruptions. Google Maps is also pretty reliable and Apple Maps recently added Vancouver transit info and routing.
Street Food Vancouver
Now that you've figured out how to get around Vancouver, go get some food. This app tracks food trucks around the city, tells you when they are open and gives you the truck's schedules so you can find them tomorrow. It is pretty downtown-centric, but if you are ever in the area and hungry, it's a game-changer.
Vancouver Travel Guide
Whether you are new to the city, bored on a Saturday afternoon or trying to impress your Tinder date, this app can help you out. We know it sounds super lame, but the app has a pretty impressive list of things to do in and around the city. It's a good way to get to know the city or fall back in love with it. Build an itinerary and work your way through Vancouver.
With files from Jack Hauen.