The question may be, "How can I make college easier?" The answer may be, "There's an app for that!"

We're living in an age where our phones, iPads, and other mobile platforms can solve (or at least help with) many of life's everyday problems and/or tasks. For example, did you know that there's an app that can tell you the best time to run to the bathroom during a specific movie? It even gives you a quick recap of the part you missed while you were gone. Now that's what I call higher civilization!

But what about higher education? Well, as luck would have it, there are apps for that, too. In fact, there are award-winning apps for that. Twenty-one of them: The 21 Winners Of The Facebook, Gates Foundation Education App Contest Are Making College Easier. As the Tech Crunch article explains, "The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation launched a contest that aimed to challenge entrepreneurs and app developers to build awesome, innovative education apps on Facebook’s platform. ...

"... The Challenge focuses on developing apps for low-income and first-generation college students in particular, and many of the contest’s winners seek to capitalize on a growing trend within education technology: The personalization of the learning process, especially within the framework of education targeted at low-income and first-generation college students." ...

This is very cool stuff. I wish I had had the advantage of some of this supportive help when I was going through the college process. Unfortunately back then, the molecules that would eventually come together to form the plastic for cell phones were still on the drawing board.

Nevertheless, I thought you might find it informative to read about a few of these college-helping apps. So, here are 10 of the 21, with an excerpt from the brief Tech Crunch descriptions. Some have live links.

College Abacus — ... a free, one-stop search for comparing higher education pricing ... allows college-bound students and their families to search and compare net prices — tuition and fees minus grant aid — across more than 2500 schools and counting.

CollegeGO by The College Board — ... puts under-served students on the path to college enrollment by helping them explore the key components of effective college planning ...

Transfer Bootcamp by The Melville Institute — ... for students seeking to transfer from community college to a four-year university ...

Zombie College by Get Schooled — ... “as entertaining as it is educational.” ... no complex instructions — and is played in short bursts. The twist? The Zombie College game map is the college-going map.

Coach Me, Beyond 12 — ... aims to provide college students with automated alerts delivered to their mobile devices and Facebook accounts to help them keep track of key deadlines ... master the activities, behaviors and habits that increase their success in college.

Applyful — ... for college applicants to collect and share information with one another on the road to choosing a college.

CollegeZen by The College People — ... simplifies the college search, decision, and funding process while enhancing the experience for prospective students and parents with the belief that there is a perfect college for every student.

I’m First by The Center for Student Opportunity — ... features tools and resources to help aspiring first-generation college students and their supporters take the steps necessary to pursue and succeed in college.

Raise by Raise Labs — ...  helps students pursue their college ambitions with confidence and adds transparency to the scholarships process.

Step4College — ... particularly for underprivileged youth ... provides a comprehensive and resource-rich list of college readiness tasks ... specific and personalized to the user’s needs, including state-specific requirements.

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