Dive Brief:
- Texas A&M at Galveston launched a personal assistant app for students that has replaced the school’s age-old paper planner.
- The app requires students to add classes to their schedule first and then search for other campus activities that fit around the academic schedule.
- The app works on Android and iOS devices and is powered by Oohlala, which offers a number of automated feeds to get class schedules, event information, and other details into the system.
Dive Insight:
One of the most popular features of the TAMUG (Texas A&M University Galveston) app has been the social media component. Students have latched onto the opportunity to ask questions about their new environment and connect with their peers. While university leaders have tried to keep the workload down for involved staff members, they are expected to monitor the discussion boards and respond to relevant queries. Within four months of minimal marketing, about half of Galveston undergrads had downloaded the app.
We are in a digital world. Paper planners have helped students keep their academic and extracurricular schedules straight for decades, but perhaps it’s time for an upgrade.