18 Free Apps for Purdue Students

Like many students, college was the first time I was ever fully in charge of myself. If you’re as busy as I am, keeping track of yourself, friends, classes, and activities is a challenge. For me, my phone makes that challenge considerably easier. Nowadays, there’s an app for everything from tracking your water intake to solving difficult calculus problems, but there are a few that have proven to be especially useful during my time at Purdue.

Boiler Up: Purdue-specific apps

1. The Purdue App: This app is your guide to life at Purdue. To start, the app gives you quick access to your Purdue email, Blackboard, and your course schedule. The map of campus allows users to search buildings by name or building code, which is especially helpful if you’re just getting to know the campus. The dining tab shows which dining courts and restaurants are open and what is on their current menus, while the life tab features photos and news from all over West Lafayette. It even lets users check availability of residence hall washers and dryers as well as various equipment in the CoRec. The best part? The Purdue App was created by Purdue students.
2. Purdue Mobile Menus: Everyone loves food and Purdue Menus can help find the best food on campus. Not only does it show when each of Purdue’s six dining courts are open, but it also lists the hours and locations of other snack spots on campus (like places that accept Dining Dollars). The app lists the menu for each meal at each dining court and allows you to mark your favorite foods so you know where to find them. It’s complete with nutritional information and filters to help you meet your dietary needs.
3. Hungry Boiler: Cheap food is the best food, and Hungry Boiler offers deals for food retailers near campus. Ordering food through Hungry Boiler helps you save money while mixing up your dining options.
4. Double Map: Double Map is a must-have app if you plan on using the bus system. The app updates each City Bus’s location in real time. You can mark favorite stops, select the route you wish to ride, and check the estimated arrival time of the next bus so that you can stay on top of your travels. This is especially helpful to students who want to be able to get around West Lafayette but do not have a car on campus.
5. Purdue Alumni: The Purdue Alumni Student Experience (commonly known as PASE) is the biggest student club on campus. In 2017, they created an app for Purdue students and alumni. The app highlights PASE events and campus activities, allows access to the alumni directory, and for PASE members, stores an electronic version of the PASE membership card which can be used for deals and discounts at many local stores. The app includes the Boilermaker Challenge which acts as a bucket list of Purdue traditions and allows you to upload pictures as you complete them.

Get Organized: Apps for organizing your life

1. Outlook: Professors tend to use email as their primary method of communication, so it’s important to have easy access to your school email account to ask or answer quick questions and stay on top of your classes.
2. OneDrive and/or Google Drive: Having a method of file sharing can help with group projects and it can even help yourself. Programs like OneDrive and Google Drive allow you to grant access to your files to anyone you want as long as you have their email. Each Purdue student is set up with an Office 365 account which gives you access to both Outlook and OneDrive. Google Drive is for G-mail users and has a user-friendly interface but more limitations to editing styles within the online editing capabilities of each each Google program (Google Slides, Google Docs, etc.).
3. Cam Scanner: Cam Scanner is an outstanding tool for electronic filing. Simply take a picture of a piece of paper (like a homework assignment) and Cam Scanner will sharpen the image and make it into a neat, readable document. App users can sort pages into documents and documents into files and then export them as PDF or JPG files. With electronic submission becoming increasingly commonplace, this tool can be especially helpful for submitting assignments.
4. Cam Card: This is a version of Cam Scanner that is specialized for business cards. It scans the card in a similar manner then analyzes it to record names, phone numbers, addresses and more like an address book. Users can even sync the app data to their existing phone contacts, upload their own business card to share with others, and sort scanned contacts into groups. As a college student looking for jobs and internships, this can help you keep track of the connections you make with prospective employers.
5. Reminders: This app is pre-loaded onto iPhones, but many users do not use it to its full potential. Users can create checklists, mark completed tasks, and set reminders for specific tasks. These reminders can be set for specific times or places. For example, if you need pens, you can set the reminder to pop up next time you are within a certain distance from the book store.

Time is Money: Money management apps

1. Banking and budgeting apps: Most banks now have a mobile app to keep track of and rearrange your funds. Many even have the capability to send money to other people. Monitoring your transactions can also help you track how much money you have and alert you of any fraudulent transactions.
2. Coupon and Receipt rewards apps: Coupons.com is a great app for finding coupons and rebates for many common stores. For some stores, you can even link your rewards cards (like the Kroger Plus card) and load coupons directly from the app. Additionally, some apps offer rewards and rebates just for taking pictures of your receipts. Some rewards are just for taking pictures of the receipt while others reward or reimburse you for buying specific items. Receipt Hog, Receipt Pal, Fetch Rewards, and Checkout 51 are some of my favorites.
3. Venmo or Paypal: Venmo is a convenient app for paying your friends. You can split bills and pay them back with ease: just connect your debit card to get started. Venmo is run by Paypal, which can be used across many online shopping sites like Amazon and Etsy.

Life, Health, and Hobbies

1. Social Media: One of the most important parts of college is making connections with new people. Social media can facilitate connections with your peers and keep you informed of what is happening on campus. Purdue has many pages on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The Purdue Snapchat shows what other students are up to while following the Purdue subreddit can help answer common student questions.
2. My Fitness Pal: The best way to avoid the infamous “Freshman 15" is to eat healthy and exercise. My Fitness Pal has a food tracker that not only tracks your caloric intake, but also other nutritional needs like proteins, vitamins, and sugars. You can set fitness goals, input your exercise habits, and track your progress. the Pro version has even more features.
3. Spotify and/or Pandora: Music acts as a great stress reliever and can be a talking point in nearly any conversation. Spotify Premium and the downloadable computer app both let you pick what songs you want to listen to while Pandora and regular Spotify are excellent choices if you are looking to mix up your music selections.
4. Shazam: It’s frustrating to hear a great song but have no idea what it’s called or who it’s by. Shazam listens to a song for a few seconds before presenting you with the name and artist. For those looking to save on data use, it can even store a song clip until you connect your phone to wifi.
5. PanoTuner: This is a simple but useful app for musicians. With PanoTuner, you’ll have a tuner on hand wherever you go without having to carry an extra device.