College has been notorious for making students learn to rely only on themselves, and it is an important lesson to learn. They load students up with homework and mold them into responsible adults. We have to become independent.

So, what happens when we start becoming independent and learning how to take care of our own problems, and then walk into a class to face two people who are going to become quickly part of your daily routine? I am talking about group work, and for better or worse in the grade book, we are all going to someday be stuck with them.

Put simplistically, there are two types of people when it comes to group work. There are the passive and aggressive groups. With Finals Week quickly approaching, we are spending more time with our group partners at the library than at our dorms or apartments. We learn what type of people these group members are and how much work we ourselves are going to have to generate in order to get the points we need. For the two or three weeks you are stuck in a group project, it is like being married to these people and being forced to make it work in order to save your grade. Here are some friendly tips on working with your group to earn those extra points.

If you have an aggressive partner in your group they have more than likely blown up your email with directions telling you exactly what you need to be doing on your projects. If you are feeling that you are being pushed around, try to show more initiative. Starting the project first lets you decide which part you are going to do rather than letting the aggressive members in the group decide. Additionally, if your group makes a calendar and you turn in your portion before the deadline you will show the aggressive person in the group that you have something to bring to the table, and maybe they will stop breathing down your neck.

If you are in the opposite situation and you have people in the group that just cannot pull their own weight, this will work oppositely. If you put together a schedule so that other people in the group can see what they are expected to do, it might make them feel like they have to do more work. In the past I have started a project and then asked the group to finish the part I couldn’t get done. This works well, especially if you work in a Google application or other shared app. This way, you can see if everything got done before it is time to turn it in.

Nobody wants to have to do all of the work for themselves, but sometimes, when you are the aggressive person in your group you get stuck doing everything. When this happens taking advantage of the oft-provided peer evaluation forms can be a life saver.

Evaluating your peers for a project could potentially make or break their grades so giving a fair evaluation to all of the members of the group is important. If someone is doing more work than someone else it is important to include that information. There is always the one person in a group that can never meet with the rest of the group and never puts in any effort to get any of the project done and when this happens giving them a poor evaluation is important and deserved.

Over all, doing group projects can be a major pain, but they can also be a relief when you don’t have to do all of the work on your own. Finals Week can be a strenuous time, and if you have someone you can depend on to help you, it can make finals go much more smoothly. If you are struggling with your group, don’t pull your hair out just yet. Try talking to your partner about how you feel about the project and set expectations for each person. If someone is really good with technology and someone else is great at taking pictures, assign parts wisely so that you can ensure a good grade on the project.

Remember to have patience with your group, but if all else fails, do not be afraid to go to your professor and voice your problems with the group or change groups all together. Working well with other people is a trait that is going to have to be used for crucial times in the work force, so it is better we get used to it early. Even in the individualist structure of college, group projects provide a valuable lesson.