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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Illinois chapter.

With finals season coming up, it’s time to crack open your textbooks, consume unhealthy amounts of caffeine, and get grinding. But in today’s world with so many distractions, it can be difficult to focus on getting things done. Fortunately, there’s so many amazing apps to help you stay on task and get those grades!

1. Forest: Stay Focused

Have trouble staying off the gram while studying? This free app (also available as a Chrome extension) has the cutest method of keeping you on track! Every time you want to focus, you plant a virtual tree, and if you try to use another non-whitelisted app or website while it’s growing, your tree dies. It’s incredibly fun to watch your forest build over time and try to have more green trees than dead ones! And the cherry on top? The company also partners with Trees For The Future to help plant real trees.

2. RescueTime

Wondering how it’s been six hours and you’ve only written thirty words? Find out where all your lost time went with RescueTime- the app helps track what websites and apps are distracting you to help eliminate those from your life and refocus. 

3. Quizlet

The classic app and website is a lifesaver- by recopying your notes and study guides into study sets, you can memorize them better. When you’re crunched for time, classmates and people who’ve previously taken the class will often have uploaded sets. Whether you’re looking for an organized study plan or a quick last minute review, Quizlet is the perfect app to use for studying.

4. Brain.fm

Spending too much time jamming to your Spotify playlists instead of studying? Brain.fm claims to have one of the most advanced music AIs based on research and EEG studies to help you find the perfect music to help you study, relax, or sleep.

5. Grammarly

This Chrome extension is often a lifesaver when it comes to papers – it goes beyond autocorrect to catch grammar, syntax, mechanical, and spelling errors to make sure your next paper is mic dropping both in content and execution.

6. Calm

During all your studying, don’t forget to take care of your mental health too! This app offers free breathing exercises, meditations, white noise sounds, bedtime stories, and calming/sleep centered music, but you can access a wider library with a free trial or by paying for an annual subscription. 

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Mehek Kapur

Illinois '23

I'm a sophomore at the University of Illinois double majoring in English and Organizational Psychology and Vice President/Recruitment Advisor at Delta Kappa Delta.
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