This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mass Amherst chapter.
At the beginning of every semester we all cringe when we’re given a syllabus and notice the section labeled Group Project. Images of all-nighters doing EVERYONE ELSE’S work rush through our heads instantly. No matter what disasters we’ve previously experienced and no matter how much we complain, group projects seem to be unavoidable.
Instead of driving ourselves crazy complaining about the endless amounts of group work that will never cease, why not learn to use group projects to our advantage? With the combination of new technology and tips that have been around for decades, group projects can actually become bearable.
1) Use Apps!
Groupme is an app that can be used to make communication a million times easier for group work. The app is compatible for every type of phone, making it possible for every group member to be a part of a group text. The best part about this app is that the messages don’t back up your phone like typical group texts do AND it’s a plus being able to keep your group project texts separate from your personal ones.
2) Embrace Google
Google Docs makes it possible to share ideas instantly with your group no matter where you are. It’s really convenient being able to divide group work evenly and to add whatever you need to directly into the document. Google Docs allows you to add your work without having to deal with trying to get everyone’s schedule together to meet up…which we all know is impossible. Group papers used to be nearly impossible to complete but with Google Docs, collaborating is never a problem.
3) Avoid (Unhelpful) Friends
If you know that you work well with a friend, great! But… we all have that friend that expects us to do their portion of the work for them simply because we’re their friend. These are the situations that can be tricky to avoid but save so much frustration down the road if we do. If you know that you’re in a class with a friend that’s not going to hold their weight in a group project, make sure you don’t end up being in their group.
Group projects have been around forever but we have so many advantages over previous generations due to the endless amounts of technology out there to help us. At the end of the day it is so much better to stop complaining about the group projects that are never going to end and put our focus into making them bearable.