Earlier this year, at long last, I took my final exam and finished college. While I was in school, I tried a bunch of apps to keep track of my assignments and projects. I also spent a lot of time calculating how many projects I could ignore completely as well as the lowest possible grade I could get on the ones I actually did in order to maintain my GPA and scholarships.
Most of the time the apps didn’t help much and I just gave up and hoped for the best. This scared the heck out of my parents, who then proceeded to bother me about school even more.
When I saw the promo video for Grades 3, I’ll admit I got a little upset. I spent four years in college, and as soon as I get out, the app I always wanted finally exists. While I would never really wish to be back in school all over again, if I had to, Grades 3 would be the first app I put on my phone. Let’s dive in and see what this app can do for you.
One of the major features in Grades 3 (for me at least) is a grade calculator that can analyze your syllabus and tell you exactly what grades you need on each project to get the final grade you want. If you only need a C in the class, how much can you slack off before sliding down to a D? Grades can tell you. It can even properly factor in any extra credit you may complete.
The grade calculator is especially helpful when paired with the app’s GPA calculator. If you receive academic scholarships that require a certain GPA, this is the quickest way to find out what you need to do to keep them.
Some of the new features in the app are also very useful. You can now add due dates and reminders for projects and exams; create separate to-do lists for each of your classes; store contact info for each member of your class or study group and contact them all at once via iMessage, SMS, or email; and take notes during lectures, complete with the ability to “star” important parts (“this will be on the test, so pay attention!”)
The app has also received a design overhaul. The wood-and-paper motif is still there, but all of the images and textures have been reworked. Compared to previous versions, Grades 3 looks familiar, but vastly improved.
If Grades 3 had been around while I was in school, I can guarantee you it would have located on my very first home screen. I definitely recommend taking a look at Grade 3 if you’re having a hard time managing all of your school work.
Pricing and availability
Previous versions of Grades were ad-supported with an in-app purchase to remove the ads. This update is free for existing users, who will no longer see ads and will enjoy all previous functionailty as well as some of the new features, like push notifications and due date support. To get the full feature set—including support for multiple semesters, to-do lists, classmate/study group information, and lecture notes—existing users will need to purchase the “pro” package for $1.99.
New users, on the other hand, will simply need to buy the app for $1.99 from the App Store. It will come with all of the new functionality already included with no need to pay for the “pro” package.
You can get Grades 3 on the App Store right now.
