So Little Sis, Baby Sis, and Baby Brother have started college this fall. With that comes all the usual nervousness, excitement, and worry that comes with embarking upon a new life chapter. While some freshmen are going in excited about breaking away from their parents’ all-seeing eyes and partying, for the most part, these kids are worrying about making straight A’s and whether or not they can manage their other obligations with school. Thank God for that!

Being a life-long productivity student has allowed me to come across  and recommend a few tools that have worked great for me.  The tools can help college students of any age, and are really easy to use and implement.  They assist the college student with being productive by helping them focus and never miss an assignment.

Calendar: Google Calendar

I came across an article one of my favorite bloggers Crystal Paine of Money Saving Mom wrote about using Google Calendar to manage life, and just wanted to share it.  This is the method I have been using for a while and combined with the occasional paper-and-pencil method, I’m able to keep track of what is going on as well as when and where it should be going on.  By the way, color-coding is everything!

Task manager: Nozbe

I’m a hardcore to-do list person, so using Nozbe for task management combined with my calendar for my “big picture” has been great for keeping track of what needs to be done.  Nozbe integrates with Google Calendar as well, and both work great on all platforms, so that’s an added bonus.  Whether I’m on the Android phone, the iPad, or the computer, both apps keep me organized.  The ability to print and check off items manually is also appealing to those who need to print their daily list off and use a paper-and-pen system.

So how can a student use Nozbe to effectively manage their school year?  Stay tuned!

Productivity Apps:  

Study time needs to be free from distraction.  Coffitivity is great for tuning out distractions like kids at home, other people at school and the random sounds that take place in the library.  It gives you that Starbucks experience without spending Starbucks money.  You know I’m all about saving money!

The ability to tune out your surroundings help you be not only productive but also more focused and attentive.

As the semester starts, I’ll be checking in with the siblings to see how they are optimizing these tools for their college coursework, and also if they have found other apps that work for them as well.