Who to keep track of in college
- Professors and TAs. The classes you took, the projects you did well on, and what you talked about in office hours. This is who you’ll ask for recommendations.
- Internship managers and coworkers. What you worked on together and when you said you’d check in.
- Recruiters and career fair contacts. The company, the role, and what they told you to do next.
- Alumni. Where they work, the advice they gave, and a reason to send a thank-you note.
- Classmates, clubs and teams. The people you’ll want to reconnect with after graduation.
What to write down
- Where and when you met
- One detail from the conversation
- Anything you promised, with a reminder to follow up
Phone contacts vs personal CRM
| Phone contacts | BlackBook | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you met and what you talked about | A notes field, if you remember to use it | Notes on each person’s own page |
| History | None | Interaction history on each person’s page |
| Follow-up reminders | Separate app | Reminders per person, with notifications |
| Who to check in with next | Up to you to notice | Pulse suggests who to reach out to next from your notes, history and reminders |
| Account | Your phone’s contacts account | No BlackBook account; data on your iPhone and in your own private iCloud |
A simple routine
After a career fair, an office-hours chat or an info session, add the person while you still remember the conversation and set a reminder for anything you promised. Once a week, open Pulse and send one short note: a thank-you, an update on a class project, or congratulations on someone’s new job. Small, steady follow-ups are what turn a contact into a reference.
The free plan covers 25 people, which is enough to start with the professors, managers and alumni who matter most.
More on this: a networking follow-up app, a personal CRM for job seekers, and how to remember details about people.
BlackBook facts
- Platform: iPhone, iOS 17.6 or later
- Price: free download; optional BlackBook Pro subscription (prices shown in the app)
- Free plan: 25 people, 2 notes per person, 30 days of interaction history
- Pro: optional subscription with VIP reminders and insights, relationship notes with tags, duplicate detection, BlackBook AI
- AI: on-device via Apple Intelligence (Pro, iOS 26, compatible iPhone)
- Privacy: data lives on your iPhone and in your private iCloud, no account, no ad SDKs, data never sold
- Developer: Preston Earnest / Earnestly Studios LLC
Frequently asked questions
Do college students really need a personal CRM?
You don’t need anything fancy. But if you go to career fairs, office hours, club events or internships, you meet more people than you can remember. A few notes and reminders make it much easier to ask for a recommendation, a referral or advice later.
Who should I keep track of?
Professors and teaching assistants, internship managers and coworkers, recruiters and people from career fairs, alumni you’ve talked to, club and team contacts, and classmates whose work you respect.
What should I write down after meeting someone?
Where you met, one thing you talked about, anything you promised to send or do, and when it makes sense to follow up. One or two lines is enough.
Is my data private?
BlackBook needs no account. Your people and notes live on your iPhone and in your own private iCloud, not on a BlackBook server. There are no ad SDKs, and your data is never sold.
Is BlackBook free?
BlackBook is free to download with a free plan of 25 people, two notes per person and 30 days of interaction history. BlackBook Pro is an optional subscription: in the US it’s $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year, and the annual plan includes a 1-week free trial. Prices are shown in the app.
What iPhones does it run on?
BlackBook requires iOS 17.6 or later. On iOS 26 with a compatible iPhone, BlackBook Pro adds on-device Apple Intelligence features.
Start your network in college. Start with 25 people.
BlackBook is free to download for iPhone (iOS 17.6+). Start with 25 people, no account needed.
Get BlackBook – Personal CRM