Students now have one more option to aid them in their studies, as pickaprof.com has added a new feature to its Web site called Study Buddy.

Study Buddy allows students to communicate with each other outside the classroom about homework, tests or notes, said Karen Bragg, director of university relations at Pick-A-Prof. The new tool also provides a forum for group project collaboration or the opportunity for professors and teaching assistants to hold interactive review sessions.

Study Buddy is one tool that differentiates them from other similar Web sites, Bragg said.

No downloads are required to use the forums; the student logs on under the course they are enrolled in, Bragg said.

“It really just gives you more options. If it’s late at night and you don’t have a friend to call, you can go online,” Bragg said.

Jim Lockard, director of technology services, said he has never been to this sort of Web site, but technology has a big influence on education and how we obtain information.

“Students may feel a loss to not see students face to face, but that is something most students are willing to give up,” Lockard said.

When it comes to student reviews, Lockard said the reviews may not represent what the course is actually like, Lockard said.

“There need to be some checks and balances,” Lockard said.

Each review submitted to the Pick-A-Prof Web site is read to be sure the review doesn’t include any obscenities, Bragg said.

The Web site also offers grade history, where the student can see the number of A-F’s the professor gives. The grades are obtained through university records, according to the Web site. There also is a student review system allowing students to write a review of the course. They also can use the schedule planner feature to aid planning their ideal schedule.

Senior communication major Kim Oakley said she finds pickaprof.com to be helpful.

“I look at them before I take the class,” Oakley said. “If it’s a bad review I’ll try to find a different one, but if not at least I know what to expect.”

The Web site was first established five years ago at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A & M University.