Here’s How To Reduce The Stress Of Group Work In Uni

You’re probably at the crux of group work right now, and hopefully, these simple pieces of advice can help it be less stressful.

Communication and staying organised is the key to reducing stress from group work, and are 5 ways you can do exactly that.

1. Get to know your group members

From my personal experience when group assignment members get to know each other it’s easier to get and accept feedback which is so so important when working together.

Yes, it can be super cringy but go around talking about your interests, what is your strength as a team member and what part of the assignment you’re most keen on doing. You’ll be able to tell what skill sets they’re bringing to the table, what’s their approach to teamwork etc.

If you’re stuck in lockdown, do a fun zoom sesh, if you’re lucky enough to not be stuck in lockdown then go grab a coffee together or book a room in the library and get cracking!

2. Assign specific and actionable roles and tasks

Ask everyone what parts they are most interested to work on, brainstorm your ideas and create an outline of an assignment. This way you can divide work up easier and be more organized. The more specific the better - give each person a title, word count or a specific number of jobs to complete etc.

This might be an extreme measure but one of my professors made us draft a contract splitting up our responsibilities and setting deadlines. Even though it was a tad bit dramatic, it was probably one of the most stress-free group assignments I had during my entire degree. So once you’ve split up your work and if you really don’t trust your group members then a contract is probably the way to go.

3. Use one chat platform to communicate

Pick one chatting platform and stick to it, it’s super helpful if all the discussions are in one place. Plus, it can help have more constructive real-time discussions and updates on the progress everyone is making. Use Whatsapp, Messenger, Microsoft teams it’s super helpful for real and stay connected with group mates.

4. Use collaborative documents

Google drive is an absolute godsend for group work! If you’re working on a presentation use google slides, if you’re writing an assignment use google docs, there are so many resources availble that are now google drive friendly. Plus, you can ask questions on the doc, and if something goes wrong or content is accidentally deleted you can always find it in your edit history which has solved so many life crises for me!

5. Schedule your catch-ups

Have check-points that are regularly scheduled into your calendar. to have discussions, discuss progress and tackle any hurdles you’re currently challenged with, and also an intervention if a group member is not carrying their weight.

Look it’s very rare to have a smooth sailing group work experience but at least it’ll prepare you for working in teams at your job which you’ll need a collaborative working style, conflict-resolution skills and patience for. We have more uni advice, if you feel like you’re having a mid-semester crisis and could use some advice on how to overcome it.

You got this!