Frequently Asked Questions

  • Voluntary group of students committed to a semester of weekly study sessions led by a peer educator

  • Members meet once per week for 90 min

    • Group time is spent with a 10 min check-in, 10 min goal sharing, 60 min focused on task, and a 10 min debrief

    • 60 minutes spent individually focused on task

    • All members set a goal for the group time and shares it out

    • Members work on their unique course materials

    • The peer educator shares relevant resources and referrals

    • Provides a welcoming, consistent space to build healthy academic habits

    • Creates extra support or structure while fostering community

    • Offers structure and connection for all members to improve as whole students

      • Regular check-ins with peers

      • Build sense of community

      • Learn about campus resources

      • Foster personal accountability towards educational goals

    • Improves confidence by helping participants learn and practice academic strategies

  • Peer educators who lead the sessions are selected and trained on learning skills, strategy, and resources  

  • Visit Accountability Group Student Interest Form to sign up for a group that fits your schedule; students can add their information to the waitlist should the preferred date and time not be available

  • Meet at the same time/day once per week in Haley 2238 throughout the semester 

  • Members are expected to attend regularly; continuously missed meetings may result in removal

  • A friendly, supportive environment where you set your own goals

  • Stating your study intentions aloud, sharing progress, and celebrating wins together

  • Each session offers individual work time 

  • Meet other students, share study tips and resources, and build accountability together

  • An hour of dedicated, personal work time 

  • Commitment and regular attendance

  • Mutual expectations for commitment and reliability – those members who do not attend regularly will be removed from the group 

Steps for Group Membership

  • 3-8 people sign up via academicsupport.auburn.edu for a group that fits their schedule 

  • Members do NOT need to be working on the same subject or class 

  • Ideal members will be consistent, supportive, and motivated

  • Dates and time are consistent through the semester 

  • 90 minutes once a week in Haley 2238 

  • Commit to consistency; prioritize this time in your planner 

  • Agree on a list of basic principles for the meeting time, and then hold each other to them 

    • What about phone notifications during this time?  

    • Are we speaking up if we have questions or is this quiet time?  

    • Are we playing music or white noise? Are people using headphones? 

    • How will we let people know they are breaking the ground rules in a productive way? 

  • Outlines provide structure and direction for the time

  • Being consistent with the outline helps everyone know what to expect when they attend

What How long Why

Check in

10 minutes

Example: What are the highs, lows, or accomplishments of the week? This is an opportunity to celebrate accomplishments and support challenges of members in the group. Positive energy and motivation are good contributions to an effective accountability group, so starting out by checking in can help set that tone.  

Set and share goals 

 10 minutes

Having concrete goals for the time are critical to an effective accountability group. During this time, members should share goals out loud - write them on a white board in the room.  

Focus

60 minutes

This can also be a time to share and try strategies. For example, collectively you may try out the Pomodoro Method and reflect on how it affects your focus or not.

Reflect

10 minutes

Members should always take time to share reflections on things like: What went well? What didn’t go well? What is one thing you learned during this time? What do you need to do to prepare for next time? How much progress did you make toward your goal(s) for the session? What resources are available to help support our goals?  

This is another opportunity to celebrate accomplishments and support challenges.