Carrington College Blog

Technology is changing college life

May 8, 2013
Technology is changing college life.

For college students today, access to technology and all the advantages it affords may seem like a fact of life. Can you remember a time when the internet wasn’t your go-to research portal? Or when you didn’t have an app on your phone to help you remember the time of your next final exam?

According to a study from NortonLive, 81 percent of college students said it would be a “complete disaster” if their laptops or desktop computers malfunctioned, while 73 percent said it would negatively affect their grades or school work. Clearly, technology is changing college life.

Email

Although it almost seems outdated now that we have the ability to instantly connect via text message or social media, email still has a huge role to play in college life. According to Mashable, 91 percent of students use email to communicate with their professors, and 38 percent can’t go more than 10 minutes without checking their emails, smartphones or laptops.

Notes

If your instructor allows it, chances are you’re opting to take notes on digital devices like many other college students across the nation. Seventy percent use keyboards to take notes and 73 percent said they can’t study without technology, according to Mashable.

Apps

What’s next in the technological revolution of college life? Mobile apps. Students use them for everything from chatting with study groups and making flashcards to calculating their grades and crafting to-do lists.

Cost

If you need more evidence that technology is becoming a huge part of the everyday lives of the 20-something crowd, just look at the costs: College students spent a collective $13 billion on electronics in 2009, according to Mashable. Last year, they each spent an average of $760 on technology, the NortonLive study revealed. How’s that for an investment?