Auditors, ambulance divers, students and even visiting heads of state have all been lost in the byzantine mazes that purport to be university campuses - but hopes for improved navigation are just an iPhone away.

Sydney company Student Services Australia has put together a clever new campus map app, Lost On Campus, which provides instant access to maps of key campus features, such as maps, coffee shops and toilets.

Users have to sign up to become a ‘StudentVIP’ – ie part of the SSA database and presumably subject to future marketing endeavours, and there are a few features which will undoubtedly be included for future app iterations – easier controls to change campus settings, greater map detail, content for tours etc.

However, for a brand-new app, Lost On Campus has a lot to offer – and will undoubtedly provide an excellent advertising platform to reach current students as uptake grows. The marketing speil indicates that 27 campuses have already agreed to be mapped and the remaining recalcitrants can't be far off.

Where does this leave universities? While lots of students will be happy to finally be able to find that pesky lecture that they sought but never located, universities must face the fact that an important slice of campus convenience has escaped their control - or else create a better home-branded one that wrests back student attention.

The spectre of students getting ads for other products and other universities while seeking directions to their next latte will be a major concern to many university officials, both in and out of the marketing department, as retention rates come under increasing pressure in a system that is increasing demand driven. At the moment, the product is being cautiously welcomed by marketing departments who have been unable to cobble together budgets to develop apps in house - and clearly by students who year after year question the logic of building names and the readability of campus maps.