At some point or another, we’ve all been forced to work on a class project that requires us to form into teams. Most teachers think it’ll be a great experience. After all, we’re going to work with others in the workforce, right? Well, this is true, but in that case, we’d be working with people who are all motivated by common interests, such as a paycheck and the ability to present quality work for your company. In college, most people just want to get the project done, get a good grade, and move on. These school projects won’t continue after the semester, and you won’t have to constantly keep your professional image sparkling. After working on math projects, science projects, English projects, and more, I now understand what everyone is groaning about. Group projects are just an all-around nightmare.

Teams in the workforce are often made of people with different skill sets and can all bring something different to the table. College students have the exact same potential, and while every student can contribute meaningful ideas of equal quality to the group and help the work get done faster, this rarely happens. Often times, you’ll work with a mix of the following types of people:

First, you'll see the "Team Leaders". You don't have to look for them, they'll immediately identify themselves. This will be the one or a few students who decide that they won’t accept anything less than a stellar grade for this project. Therefore, they’re willing to be the first people to speak up when asked for ideas. They will usually submit their work first, and then ask the team how they’re doing. The team leaders are the reason the project gets done remotely well.

Next, we've got the "In-Betweeners". These are the people who do their part, but not much more. These people will usually speak when spoken to, but not at first. They turn in their work before the deadline, but not necessarily early. They contribute a fresh idea here and there, and can’t be ruled out as a good part of the team. They help get the job done.

Then, there are the "People Who Scrape By". These are the students who are just there for the ride. They know that the team leaders will tell them when something’s happening or when a deadline is approaching, so they don’t pay too much attention. They will submit work at the last second, leaving the rest of the team to just hope that it’ll get done. They won’t contribute that much to the group and participate at a minimal rate. In their opinion, they have more important things to do, and this can be handled by the other 3, 4, 5 or 6 people in the group.

Lastly, there are the "No-Shows". These are the students that just don’t care. They don’t answer messages, they don’t show up to class, and they just want to get the points that are essential. If they do any work at all, it’ll be there at the last minute without the rest of the group knowing, and you’ll see them on very few occasions besides a class here and there and the final exam. If you get one of these students in your group, a conference with your professor will almost always be needed.

So, the next time you’re in a group project, think about what role you’ll play. Will you be the team leader, or will you be someone who goes for the minimal effort assignments? Consider the impacts on your classmates. Consider their grades, their time, and what your part means to the whole assignment. Remember, the more work that’s done at the beginning and the better the quality of that work is, the quicker the project will be done, and the better the grade will be.