Question about study groups...

I belonged to a study group in the beginning of first semester and it didn't work out for me. I haven't joined another study group and I have some of the highest grades in our class. So, no, it's not going to make or break you if you don't have a regular study group as long as you understand the material. Good luck in nursing school!

I don't do study groups. I do better alone. I have a few friends that I can call if I'm stuck on something.

If you are going to have a SG, assign someone to oversee the group for that session. This person will get the group back on track and call break times etc...

I dont do study groups. Nothing ever gets done and people tend to confuse me more.

Hi,

I am not really a study group person and also my current situation(single mom,two young kids) makes it almost impossible. I really believe you can succeed in nursing school without joining a study group. I am doing okay so far....

Thanks to everyone who has responded so far... it is good to know that it is possible to do well without study groups. I have heard a lot of emphasis placed on joining a study group to ensure success and it worries me. Like I said, I have always been an independent learner.. other people often pose a distraction for me rather than assistance... but I am not opposed to helping others in study groups...

I can't wait for the first day of school! I am excited even though I know once it starts I will long for the freedom and down time of summer... haha

Thank you for starting this thread, ZiggysGal. I've been worrying over the idea of being part of a study group, too. I do much better on my own, but my school strongly recommends that we each be part of a study group. I'm very focused in my studies, but I'm also very friendly. I would probably be the one to start conversations that were off-topic.

At any rate, I'm feeling more confident at this point, about not participating in a study group. Thanks again, and best of luck to you when school starts!

No study groups for me. In my (limited) experience they tend to turn into b**ch sessions and gossip fests. I don't have that kind of time to waste! I study alone and when I run up against something complicated my long-suffering husband listens while I explain the concept to him over & over; I learn best by teaching to someone else. Subsequently, Hubby could probably pass NCLEX as well I as could.

Besides, I spend so much time with my clinical group that we're all pretty sick of each other and just need a break.

Depending on who I get together with for a study group they do help a lot, but I also study beforehand on my own. With the girls I normally get together with, we all study on our own and then come together for a few hours before the test and just share tips and tricks we have figured out and things we find interesting or ask questions. I enjoy study groups but definitely don't use them as my only source of studying.

it's possible. I study great on my own but did groups here and there and I was usually the one with the random facts that would show up on tests. Besides socially, they weren't much of a benefit to me.

I've never done really well in study groups; if the pressure isn't on, nobody ever gets anything done, and everyone's always at a different stage of studying so there's inevitably those of us who are pretty well prepared and those who haven't even looked over their own lecture notes yet and expect to be taught everything. Once in a blue moon I'll find a group that's as overachieving as I tend to be and we can study well because we keep up with material as the semester progresses instead of test-time cramming, but usually it's more frustration than help.

That said... I do often benefit from a day-before-the-test study session where (theoretically) everyone has reviewed the material thoroughly and we're getting together to quiz each other and fine tune our knowledge. I make "flash cards" on my computer using software designed for studying and everyone I've studied with has loved to get together and let the program test us. Those sessions have always helped me bump my exam grades up a couple of points.

So, no, you don't need study groups to survive. But if you can find a group to review with before a test, when everyone's focused and feeling the pressure, that can often be quite useful.