Tell me about your study group/study sessions

sandanrnstudent · Jul 31, 2011

In my study groups there were three people and we met weekly. We would have already studied independently and came with questions, flash cards already made, and charts to organize certain information easier. We would answer each others questions and review skills back and forth to make sure we had them.

Hope this helps,

Sand an rnstudent

Hawkens · Jul 31, 2011

I am what they call a visual learner so study groups don't work for me too well. It was homemade flashcards(multicolor markers used for different parts of the card) and diagrams/pictures taped to the walls of my room. I also used the memory notebook of nursing series and Mosby's memory notecards.

yesicandothis · Jul 31, 2011

@Hawkens I'm the same way--I am very visual! I made flashcards, went to approved medical websites--especially mayoclinic.org helps to breakdown diseases, tests, causes, in a lay person's term, which I found helped me connect the dots. Also, posters for each disease category--causes, definitions, tests, meds, nursing diagnoses, all helped me to learn! And then route memorization! Good luck, I thought study groups were more helpful before finals, just to see what other people found and were studying, good luck!

MannaKay · Aug 1, 2011

We have a super study group. There are anywhere from 2-8 of us at any given meeting, but usually it's about 6. We meet in hotel lobbies w/wi-fi (after we call and make sure it's ok, of course) and basically just read through our powerpoints/notes. We find this to be helpful as everybody takes different notes, somebody may have written down something you missed and vice-versa. Other times we do nclex questions, mostly from the success books (fundamentals success, med-surg success, etc). We take a lot of breaks and joke around a lot, coming up with silly sayings or stories to remember key concepts. We always say we'll meet weekly to keep caught up, but we usually just meet the weekend or couple nights before a test. We are far from serious or structured, but it works for us. I never studied in a group before nursing school either, but I wouldn't have made it through the first year without my study group. We're like family! Remember, not every group is going to be the right fit for you. Try studying with a few people to see who you work best with, and study by yourself, too.

chulada77, ADN, BSN, MSN, APRN · Aug 1, 2011

Don't believe everything you hear. My classmates said the same thing but when I heard them "studying" I knew it wasn't for me. 50% of their "studying" was about all sorts of non-nursing topics and 50% was true studying. Plus they would study for hours and hours and hours........I didn't have time for that. I studied along always and scored higher on tests than any of the group studiers. If I had questions or need clarification I had a couple of classmates that were also lone-studiers that I would talk with.

Study groups are wayyyy overrated! If you are a lone studier there is no reason to change. My motto: study smarter not longer. I found study groups motto was: study wayyy longer not smarter.

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · Aug 1, 2011

Thank you everyone for taking the time to write back and give me your pointers!

Chulada77, I always felt study groups were a bit overrated. Last semester I was taking stats and I was going alright, except a few sections in the chapter. I'd get together sometimes every week to cover what happened in class and do the homework together. It was alright sometimes, if I was desperate for help. Otherwise, it was overwhelming because everyone studied differently.

I did like that we supported eachother. I am hoping to find one or two people I can at least call in case I am stuck. I hate the idea for studying for hours. I can't do that as I am ADD. I study in like 20 minute increments, lol.

BelleNscrubs04 · Aug 2, 2011

According to a study skills course I took last year, research supports study groups. Those who belong to a study group on average score better. That said: pick your study groups/partners carefully. Have a plan to help steer everyone back on track when people try to get off subject and waste time. If you get the study group together it can be easier to set the perimeters and keep the group focused. That's what I usually try and do. And of course, a study group doesn't replace studying on your own. It just supplements and expands on it.

Iridescent Orchid, CNA, LPN · Aug 2, 2011

Choose wisely what "group" you make yourself a part of. I, for one, have never been a group person, especially when it came to school-related areas. I've never been in a group that truly studied as they should have. I learned that while I was sitting in that circle, I was the only one who truly cared about the material and the grades. I also tend to learn everything so much more intensely when I study alone, considering my best form of studying consists of a stack of note cards and my brain. In my opinion, it's best to study alone. Everyone has their own routes of studying though, so of course groups may work amazingly for some, but I'd tread with caution...a lot of people seem to get side-tracked while having study sessions and before they know it they wasted all their time venting or gossiping and guess what? The test is the next day and they bombed. Be careful! :rolleyes:

pitaya · Aug 2, 2011

When I first started nursing school, I thought that people would want to study together, but that was often not true.

For my first degree, I would meet up with friends at the library or coffee shops and we would just sit and study together. (We were all in different classes/majors, so we'd all be working on different things by ourselves.) In fact, my boyfriend would always accompany me to study. But when I started nursing school (and moved far away from these friends and boyfriend) and mentioned studying together with my classmates, everyone seemed to feed me the "I'm a lone studier" line, so I got used to studying at home by myself....but it was lonely...until one night when I made a friend in nursing school who was a coffee shop studier and we started asking each other questions on the notes and it became our ritual the night before every exam. I am so glad I found her because having someone to ask me questions on every powerpoint slide for the notes really helped my studying along!

I did find another study group of about 4 people, but I didn't like the group dynamics, and I much preferred the one-on-one with my good friend because it was more focused on what we needed to know.

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · Aug 2, 2011

Thanks again for all your opinions.

Pitaya, I have had really good results with having just one person to study with. I had one study partner that was so excellent. We were taking chemistry together. She was a prenursing student but her long term goal was medicine. She was SO serious about school. We got really close and could study anywhere. We'd even study or do our homework at McDonald's. Good times. I hope I find someone like that.

tech1000 · Aug 3, 2011

I didn't do study groups. I did end up meeting up with a friend before one of my finals and we went through the study guide together and just talked about what we knew about each one and what was important. It helped with the final. Overall though, I prefer to just study alone. I'm more effective that way.