Keeping Study Group Sessions on Track as a Pre-Law Student

By Elana Goodwin on October 19, 2016

This article is brought to you by Kaplan, the leader in test prep for over 90 standardized tests, including the GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT.

While some students may prefer to study alone, having a study group can be an effective way to study any subject. Being part of a study group allows you to bounce ideas off other people, test and be tested by one another, and gives you the benefits of numerous notes and perspectives, meaning you’re bound to get the best information in the most cohesive way if you all put your heads and notes together.

If you’re a member of a study group, especially as a pre-law student, you want to get the most out of your meetings — so here’s how to keep your study group sessions on track.

Photo Credit: Pixabay.com

1. Quality over quantity. When forming your study group, you’ll want to ideally keep it to 3-4 people, but absolutely no more than six people, tops. When your group gets to be a bigger size, there ends up being too much chit-chat and socializing and not enough getting done. It’s harder to get everyone to focus and contribute when you’re working with more people, so keep it more exclusive, even if that means you have to say no to people who might want to study with you.

You’ll also want to pick good study partners when forming your study group. Some people may be more easily distracted than others or not willing to give as much to the group, instead hoping to get more out of it than really contribute.

Choose study partners who are dedicated to getting good grades and learning the material and who show up to class and are committed. These are the kinds of students you want in your study group as they’ll be an asset to the group and pull their weight, and will enable you to keep your sessions on track.

2. Location, location, location. More crowded areas tend to be full of distractions, so when you’re meeting your study group, try to find a place that will be quieter, will allow you to discuss your material as needed, and will have minimal distractions. Consider reserving a study room at a campus library or look into whether there are available classrooms accessible to students in the evenings for study sessions.

If you’re meeting several times a week, try to book the same room so your location remains consistent and a new place won’t throw off the group or offer distractions. If you’re not able to reserve a room or can’t guarantee you’ll get a room for each study session, consider hosting your study group sessions at one of your members’ homes if they have a semi-private living room you’d be able to take over each meeting or have a large bedroom they’re willing to offer up as a study space.

Find a location that will work for your group and try to maintain some consistency as far as when, where, and how often you meet.

3. Don’t go overtime. Once you’ve hit your groove in studying, it may be easy for your study group session to go on for hours. However, you really shouldn’t study more than 2-3 hours at a time when studying in a group, as you’ll find that oftentimes when you start going longer, your group will become less productive and more likely to start socializing. Studying is hard, so rather than trying to meet less often for longer, schedule study group sessions more often for a lesser amount of time.

Keep your eyes on the clock and to make sure your study sessions stay on track, try to start on-time and end at the designated time so your group will be respectful and show up when they’re supposed to and know that if they have plans for after the group, the study session will remain true to its purpose and proposed time slot.

You’ll also want to schedule a few study breaks during your session so people can go to the bathroom, catch up with each other, etc. which will make you all be more productive the rest of the session.

4. Come prepared. Before each study session, be sure you’re prepared to study and other members of the group are too. Show up to the session with a clear understanding of what you’re going to be discussing and going over that meeting and a rough estimate of how long you’ll want to spend on each subject you’re hoping to cover.

Remind everyone in your study group to be prepared for the session by reviewing notes, doing the reading, and coming with questions or specific aspects of the topic they’d like to go over with the group. When everyone comes ready to learn and study, they’ll be productive members of the study group and contribute to the session, and not having to waste time going over things that could’ve easily been reviewed pre-meeting will keep your session on track.

If you’re part of a study group, especially as a pre-law student, you’ll want your group session to be productive, so use these four tips to keep your study group on track.

Learn more about Kaplan’s test prep options and start building the confidence you need for Test Day.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Get Top Stories Delivered Weekly

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format