By Liane Chu
Edited by Natalie Grace Sipula
[3 minute read]
As students, we are all looking for ways to make our lives at USC more streamlined and convenient. Once the semester begins, time usually gets away from me, no matter how organized I am. However, I have started incorporating some apps and tools into my daily life to stay on top of things and generally help me navigate life on campus better. Below are a couple of these apps and tools that help me accomplish that goal!
1. USC Schedule Helper
This is a chrome extension developed by a USC student that is a life saver when going through USC course registration. This extension will let you view how many spots are left in a class before registering and shows if the class conflicts with another class already added to your calendar. If a section is full, you can sign up for email alerts to notify you when a spot opens up, which is particularly helpful if you want to get into a popular class but don’t want to spend time continuously checking Web Registration to see if a spot has opened up.
2. Coursicle
Similar to the USC Schedule Helper, Coursicle is an app that helps with the course registration process. You are able to search for a class, view recent professors who taught the course, the times the sections are offered, the average class size, and more! Download the app or checkout the browser version here.
3. USC Campus Dining App
Tired of waiting in line for food? Well now you can place an order, pay ahead of time, and pick up your food whenever it’s ready! The app works for 18 USC Campus Dining locations including Fertitta Café, Burger Crush and Seeds Marketplace. You can pay with credit card, USCard, Dining Dollars, or meal swipes. Once your order is placed, you will be notified when the order is ready for pick up! This is particularly helpful if you only have a short break between classes and want to maximize your time spent studying. Learn more on how to download the app here.
4. LiveSafe
LiveSafe is a mobile safety app managed by USC DPS that allows users to contact emergency responders with a click of a button. The app works for both the University Park and Health Science Campus. Once you make an account, the app will allow you to contact DPS or 911 instantly, anonymously report suspicious activity, and have your friends and family virtually escort you with the SafeWalk feature. You can check out some fo the features of the app and download it here.
5. Free Lyft
USC offers free Lyft, also known as “Fryft” colloquially among students, between the hours of 6pm – 2am (UPC) every day within the free Lyft Zone (about a one mile radius around campus). This is great for students coming home from a night class or going grocery shopping in the Village in the evenings. Invitations to activate the Free Lyft program should have been sent out to your USC emails at the beginning of the semester, and you can find more information here.
I hope these different apps and tools are helpful to you, and can make your life on campus at USC a little easier! I have implemented these into my daily routine and semester schedule and found that they have made an impact on my life in many ways. I am always on the lookout for more tools like these, and a great way to find them is by talking to other students or referring to social media or the USC website for more information!
Featured Image by Richard Cabusao on Unsplash
Lianne is a senior majoring in Business Administration and minoring in Applied Analytics. She is from the Bay Area and loves exploring good food places and cafes all the way from NorCal to SoCal. She is the past President of the Asian American Tutorial Project, a volunteer organization on campus that focuses its efforts on giving back to the LA Chinatown community and beyond, and has also served as a bilingual teaching assistant in China. Lianne can speak Cantonese and Mandarin, and enjoys meeting people from all different backgrounds and cultures as it always brings upon new stories and adventures!