Best/Worst Studying Environments for Pre-Business School Students

By Francine Fluetsch on December 15, 2016

This article is brought to you by Kaplan, the leader in test prep for over 90 standardized tests, including the GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT.

If you are prepping to head to business school, you are going to be spending a lot of time studying: first to get into your business school of choice, and then once you are actually in the school as well. A key component in this is figuring out the best places to study so you will be the most productive.

A good/bad study environment can make or break your production level, so the sooner you can figure out the best environment for you, the better. This way, once you get into your dream business school, you will already know how you need to study, and your future self will thank you for it. Let’s look at some study environments to give you some ideas of what might be best for you.

Coffee shop

Pros – When we are studying, it can be nice to get out of the house and enter an environment with some background noise and commotion, as well as a place that has access to caffeine. Being around other students who are also studying can help you get into the studying zone. You can try out different coffee shops to find the one with the best seating, best coffee, and best atmosphere for the ultimate study experience.

I personally enjoy coffee shops because getting out of the house forces me to be productive, the coffee helps me stay awake, and they usually are equipped with free Wi-Fi so you don’t have an excuse not to get anything done. Also, it’s awkward to watch Netflix in a public place like a coffee shop, so you are less likely to procrastinate.

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Cons – While some background noise can be nice, coffee shops can also get to the point where they are somewhat distracting, especially if your business studying requires you to be reading a lot. Coffee shops often are playing music, and if the speakers are bumping, you might not be focusing as well as you’d like.

There is also the chance that you will easily run into someone from school that wants to talk, leading you to have an unexpected time lapse of chatting it up instead of getting to work.

Library:

Pros – Whether at your campus library, your future business school’s library, or your local public library, libraries can provide excellent environments for you to get your studying done. They are quiet, sometimes offer free snacks, and are surrounded with other people who are also trying to get their work done, thus influencing you to be productive instead of slacking off.

This can be a great place to go when you just cannot focus at home, and makes it easy to research and write papers since thousands of books are at your disposal. Libraries are also great if you don’t have your own computer or printer, since you can use their facilities to get all of your work accomplished.

Cons — Libraries are great because they are quiet, but this can also be the downfall to this environment. If you are in a room of almost complete silence for too long, you will start to go a little crazy and may not be as productive as you would hope. Libraries are great for short term sessions of intense focus, but if you try and draw them out too long, it will result in a crash and you will have to leave since you won’t be getting anything else done once you hit that point.

In your apartment:

Pros – Studying at home means you don’t have to make yourself presentable to the outside world. On rainy days, it can be nice to be snuggled up under your covers, in your pjs, studying for your upcoming exam. This is the prime location for when you feel self-motivated but don’t really want to go out anywhere. You’ll be saving money as well because when you need a food break, you can just go to your kitchen for a snack, whereas when you are studying outside, you have to then go buy something.

Cons – While it’s nice to be comfy in your bed while you are studying, there is a point where you can get too comfy, where you end up napping instead of studying for your business class. Staying cooped up inside can also make you become bored with studying more easily, and it can be harder to resist the Netflix since it’s right there at your disposal, and no one is going to judge you for going on there besides your inner self. The problem with staying in is also the fact that your roommates might be loud and annoying, and unlike at a coffee shop or the library where you can just move seats, at your place you will be kind of stuck.

These are just three of the many places for you to get your studying on. What I’ve noticed is that a variety of study environments can be helpful to keep yourself at your most productive potential. Have more ideas? Let us know in the comments below. Happy studying!

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