Collaborate and Conquer: A Master’s Student’s Guide to Online Teamwork

During a virtual lecture, students will join in and listen to the teacher as they would during an in-person class, usually via a video chat application like Zoom. While virtual lectures are part of every online master’s degree program, whether or not they are pre-recorded or live will depend on the course or program format. Students can expect to participate during live/scheduled lectures, as the professor may ask questions or break students into smaller groups while the class is in session.

According to the National Education Association, group projects can improve students’ social and interpersonal skills by teaching them how to work with various types of learners and develop their leadership skills. Group projects for online master’s degree students typically involve small teams breaking down their workload into smaller manageable tasks and distributing the work to meet set deadlines.

You’ll likely use platforms like Slack and Google Drive to communicate and collaborate when working on group projects. You can also expect to collaborate during video meetings via programs like Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Chances are your university will also have an online learning platform that allows you to communicate with other students via video or chat.

Online master’s students often form small groups with peers to discuss assignments and review academic content. Study groups provide a platform where students can share diverse perspectives on challenging subjects to enhance understanding, clear doubts, and prepare for examinations. According to Harvard, being part of a group engages you with the course material in a deeper way and allows you to set up mini deadlines and build accountability into your week.

As an online master’s student, you’ll often interact with your study group through video conferencing and shared tools like Notion or Evernote. These platforms allow you to share academic materials and collectively navigate complex courses, making your study sessions more organized and efficient.

In some specialized master’s programs — like Purdue University’s College of Engineering — lecturers perform wet lab activities on campus, and students remotely access these experiments through a network of computers and servers. Virtual labs are favorable because students can use them effectively and efficiently to perform lab experiments regardless of their experience level and the course.

Virtual labs use software like LabVIEW or MATLAB, where you can run simulations and collect data. These programs use simulation software or web-based applications where students can manipulate variables, conduct experiments virtually, and observe outcomes.

Online master’s peer review programs involve students analyzing each other’s projects, presentations, and assignments to provide constructive feedback. Peer reviewing may be more common in certain master’s programs such as creative writing, journalism, mass communication, architecture, and international relations. Peer reviews promote knowledge diversity and encourage new perspectives. You might use platforms like Turnitin for initial document submissions and video conferencing software like Zoom to discuss your real-time feedback. The “Track Changes” feature in Microsoft Word also lets you add comments directly to your peer’s document.

Research groups are teams focusing on a common research topic. Online focus or research groups can methodologically help perform rigorous and quality research. These research groups commonly apply to master’s programs such as research management (like Rutgers’ M.S. in Clinical Research Management), public health, environmental science, and clinical courses. Students can meet virtually to select the research topic, plan research, and discuss updates. They can also distribute responsibilities such as literature review, data collection, and analysis, which can help the group complete their project on time using online tools.

Working in groups can make you more accountable and responsible, as your colleagues count on you to contribute and deliver individual responsibilities on time. This means you may find yourself taking more detailed notes or asking key questions to fulfill your team obligation. Online groups often hold regular meetings where each member presents their progress, which may increase your sense of responsibility to deliver. Group members can also serve as accountability partners, encouraging you to meet your deadlines.

Group work also involves sharing responsibilities, especially in online teams where members have varying schedules. For example, you can share a Google Doc with your colleagues, and each member can take turns updating their contribution or compiling notes. Group leaders often assess the group’s skill distribution before assigning tasks, which improves the quality of your work and your performance in the group work. It also allows you to share what you learned as you fulfill your duty and reduces the overall project workload.

Your graduate study is likely to bring together students with different experiences, cultures, and backgrounds. For example, a Master of Business Administration program may include students with undergraduate degrees in economics, human resources, and accounting, allowing you to analyze problems from different angles and challenge your thinking and biases. As you learn new perspectives, you also learn how to work with people from different backgrounds, further enriching your experience; research shows that you can develop greater intercultural competence when you collaborate with team members from different cultures and nationalities.

Interacting with group members can help inspire healthy communication skills using a mixture of writing, listening, and speaking. Primarily, you’ll develop enhanced written skills as you learn to convey complex ideas via emails and team communication like project outlines. You’ll also develop active listening skills, which enrich discussions by helping you dig deeper into the nuances of what you’re learning — especially as you participate in virtual meetings. As a result of your master’s group work, you’ll also develop speaking skills, as you’ll be expected to articulate ideas clearly during group presentations or discussions.

Group work enables you to learn new skills as you collaborate and share with other group members. For example, peers may share their study habits, problem-solving techniques, or knowledge using specific software. Interacting with colleagues also helps you develop interpersonal skills such as teamwork, emotional intelligence, and conflict resolution. You can also apply these interpersonal skills in your career to help build and maintain professional relationships.

Research shows that motivation is a benefit of group work, alongside benefits like boosting your creativity and exchanging ideas. Your group members provide a mutual support system that can help you overcome academic and personal challenges. You may also get motivation from achieving group milestones and encouraging each other to complete bigger tasks. Your group members’ performance, knowledge, and skills may motivate you to achieve personal study goals.

Working in small online groups helps students develop problem-solving skills. Students develop problem-solving skills when they brainstorm group challenges to identify problems or expectations, determine causes or reasons, discuss solutions and plans, implement ideas, and evaluate their impact. Beyond academic challenges, working in groups also exposes you to interpersonal dynamics that require problem-solving, such as resolving conflicts or navigating different communication styles.

Taking part in online group work prepares you for your future in various ways, as it’s highly likely that you’ll work with diverse people throughout your career. Interacting with group members can help build transferable skills you can take to any job, such as teamwork, leadership, and communication approaches that can help you collaborate with your colleagues in the workplace. You’ll also be skilled at building relationships with colleagues, which may develop into professional networks

Online group work prepares you for remote work, which is becoming more prevalent. Research shows that at least 58% of employees in America work remotely at least once a week.

Group work provides opportunities for master’s students to socialize, which helps build relationships. It also helps you overcome feelings of loneliness, especially in online learning, where you only interact with colleagues and lecturers at specific times. Online learning features various tools to help you socialize with peers, including instant messaging and video conferencing platforms. Online group interaction develops a sense of community, an educational benefit more commonly associated with in-person classes.