8 Tools Every College Student Needs in Their Arsenal

From tough classes to countless assignments and group projects, college is a busy time. Seeking an in-person or online liberal arts associates degree can be very difficult work, but there are ways to make it a little easier for yourself. College can be a time where students truly enjoy what they’re doing and learning, and successfully balance their homework with their social life. Here are some tools that every college student should keep on hand to ensure an easier time at school.

A trusty calculator

College-level math classes are tough, but they aren’t the only place you’ll have to do math equations. Since math is the “language of the universe,” it’s commonly used in classes outside of math. Students have used math in science, psychology, and even philosophy, and math equations vary from numbers to logic. Having a calculator tucked away in your backpack will make these classes easier.

A quality backpack

Speaking of storage, you’ll likely have to lug around multiple items from class to class. From multiple textbooks for the day’s classes to your laptop or notebooks, you’ll need a backpack that can hold everything without ripping. A backpack that offers support and comfort for your back is also a plus.

A good laptop

If you’re still using your dad’s five-year-old laptop, you may want to try looking for a new one. Being in college, you’ll use your laptop frequently: writing papers, turning in assignments online, responding to your school emails, etc. Having a laptop that runs at tip-top shape will make getting work done easier.

Multi-colored pens and highlighters

Multi-colored pens and highlighters are a great way to organize notes. Color coding your notes make you a more efficient worker: you can find key parts of your notes faster and use your key to keep track of certain subjects and topics in chapter notes. Pens can also be used to color-code your agenda, so you can keep track of assignments for each class as well as notes the level of importance between tasks.

Tabs for organization

Another way to organize your notes is to use colorful tabs in your notebooks. You can use orange tabs for one class and blue for another; red tabs can mark areas you need to revisit for studying purposes.

Daily planners (not weekly or monthly)

Though they’ll be larger than a weekly or monthly agenda, daily planners allow you to write down what you need to for each individual day. Monthly planners are virtually calendars and weekly planners only allow for so much scheduling. A daily planner gives you much more space to acknowledge tasks that need to be completed. And if you’re really willing to splurge, you can get daily planners which offer hourly space to plan out what you need to do in a day.

A large, reusable water bottle

Staying hydrated matters. You should be drinking eight glasses of water per day at the least. You can get water bottles that exceed eight ounces and can stock up on water so that you’re hydrated through back-to-back classes.

A good phone camera

A good phone camera is important for a college student so that they can take pictures of things they need to study or take pictures for a class assignment. Whether you’re taking pictures of the professor’s notes on the whiteboard or taking pictures for a class project, the storage capacity of ibi will hold all the pictures you take while in school.