Before coming to Tuck, I didn’t know what exactly it meant to work in a study group, as my college education had never involved working in study groups. In fact, I was unsure of how much I would even gain from working in a study group. However, after having been at Tuck for over a month now, working in my study group has been one of my best experiences here, if not the best one.
I have been very lucky to have Kelly, Erin, Bryan and John in my group. But I also know that all of my other classmates feel the same way about their own study group members. The MBA Office formed the study groups with the goal of making each group diverse both in terms of culture and work experience. For example, each study group always has at least one international student, and each group always represents a wide range of work experience such as finance, consulting, and marketing. Such diversity allows you to learn from each other. Tuck offers a large number of meeting rooms for study groups, and study groups typically meet for 2-3 hours each day. The learning experience from study groups is valuable, because while you still prepare homework and cases individually, you then discuss the assignments within your study group, and you learn about the various approaches other members of your group took to complete the assignment. Study groups also often meet outside of the academic realm, and groups have lunch or dinner together.
Working in a study group can be challenging as well. Study group members may have different views on how to resolve the same problem, and at times, conflicts arise when deciding which view to go with for the final presentation or assignment. Learning how to resolve such conflicts can significantly increase the level of learning that goes on in study groups. Furthermore, learning how to resolve such conflicts helps us to build and improve upon the skills we will need to be successful in our future careers. Lastly, and most importantly, the best part of working in a study group is the lifelong friends you make who are always there to support you. I now have the privilege of calling Kelly, Erin, Bryan and John my friends. Working in study groups is just one of the many great experiences of joining the Tuck community.
Read the full article: The study group experience