SYNCSTUDY | COHORT PROJECT
Optimizing group studying— balancing productivity with fun
MY ROLE
UX Designer
TEAMMATE
Lam P. (Developer)
TOOLS
Figma, Notion
TIMELINE
Oct - Nov 2024 (2 months)
DESCRIPTION
SyncStudy is a web app designed to boost productivity and accountability in group study sessions by making todo lists transparent and syncing everyone under a shared group pomodoro timer.
CONTEXT
SyncStudy was developed during UW Cseed’s (design and engineering community) six-week Buildspace program, a space designed to empower students to turn ideas into impactful projects.
Every Tuesday, Lam and I worked alongside peers and mentors in a supportive and motivating environment, providing us the perfect place to bring SyncStudy to life.
PROBLEM
Group study sessions often become more distracting than productive.
Roaming around UW, you will always see groups of friends studying together—whether it be the undergrad library, the apartments, or even the dining hall. A good amount of the times, they aren't studying/working on the same things. Regardless, students turn to working with their friends to thrive in a motivated environment.
However, these same environments can also be distracting. I know this because I actively experienced this. After talking with different friends and members at BuildSpace, I realized this was a shared concern. Group study sessions fall short of their potential. Issues such as unstructured planning, side conversations, and an overall lack of accountability take away from the productivity potential.
The problem wasn’t just mine—it was a common frustration among my peers. I was determined to find a solution.
OBJECTIVE STATEMENT
Design a streamlined tool that boosts productivity and accountability in group study sessions while preserving the social connection that motivates students. The tool aims to balance powerful features with simplicity to avoid becoming another distraction.
FINAL DESIGN PREVIEW
Sneak peek at SyncStudy—our all encompassing solution!
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
Current tools lack the balance between focus, accountability, and social connection
Existing Group Study Products
Cuckoo
Focuses on syncing Pomodoro timers for real-time group productivity. Its simplicity and lightweight design cater to users looking for minimal distractions.
LifeAt
Blends study community features with interactive virtual study rooms and goal-setting tools, appealing to those who seek collaboration and structure.
FocusMate
Prioritizes accountability through 1:1 virtual coworking sessions, pairing users based on their goals and work styles.
StudyStream
Leverages community-driven motivation with gamified achievements, creating a virtual study atmosphere for students.
Distinct Market Gaps
After tearing through the different products, I synthesized 3 distinct market gaps that SyncStudy could capitalize on.
1
Focus on In-Person Groups
Prioritizes accountability through 1:1 virtual coworking sessions, pairing users based on their goals and work styles.
2
Transparent Task Sharing
Prioritizes accountability through 1:1 virtual coworking sessions, pairing users based on their goals and work styles.
3
Non-Excessive Features
Prioritizes accountability through 1:1 virtual coworking sessions, pairing users based on their goals and work styles.
SURVEYS
Confirming at a large scale that students feel more productive studying alone (even though they prefer group sessions).
To gain a holistic understanding of student study habits and challenges, I surveyed over 40 college students. The survey aimed to uncover key pain points in their study processes, specifically regarding solo and group study dynamics.
Key Questions
Do you prefer working/studying alone or with others?
What challenges, if any, do you face when working/studying with friends or in a group?
Why do you work/study with friends or in a group?
On a scale of 1 to 5, how productive do you feel when you work/study with friends or in a group?
One major insight from the survey revealed that while majority of students prefer working with others rather than alone
46.4% rated their productivity in group settings as 3/5
53.6% who rated their productivity alone at a 4/5
This indicates that, although students enjoy the social and motivational benefits of group study, they are not achieving their desired productivity levels in these settings.
INTERVIEWS
Hearing detailed stories behind the survey results
To gather more detailed insights into college student’s experiences with group studying, I conducted eight 1:1 structured interviews with survey participants either in person or through zoom. I asked each participant 10 questions, with each interview lasting roughly 30 minutes.
Key Questions
Do you prefer working/studying alone or with others?
What challenges, if any, do you face when working/studying with friends or in a group?
Why do you work/study with friends or in a group?
On a scale of 1 to 5, how productive do you feel when you work/study with friends or in a group?
COMBINED INSIGHTS
Group study is highly effective for motivation and accountability but often struggles with social distraction and a lack of structure
Based on the user research (surveys & interviews) and the secondary research (internet search & competitive analysis), three key issues emerged:
Insight #1: Distractions come from mulitple fronts—personal, group dynamics, and feature overload
Students face distractions not only from within themselves (which is there in solo studying as well) but also from unsynchronized group behaviors and overly complex productivity apps that introduce noise. This multi-layered distraction undermines their ability to actually thrive working in a group environment.
Insight #2: Group study momentum fails due to a lack of clear structure
Interviewees really valued the flexibility of studying with people, but confessed about how this lack of synchronized timing and agenda leads to fragmented attention. It would be hard to focus if the rest of the group was talking during their break. By not being able to properly focus during their allotted focus time and continuing to take the same breaks, there was a clear wasted effort in their process.
Insight #3: Weak mechanisms for accountability reduces motivation and stalled progress.
Groups reply on mutual responsibility to sustain their productivity. However, ineffective tools for tracking their own and each other's progress left members disengaged. They weren't able to push each other to get as much done as they could.
OPPORTUNITY
A web application that provides a way for group study members to easily stay focused and motivated without requiring constant reminders or social distractions
IDEATION
Packing a shared group experience into a single dashboard screen
We mapped out our 3 key issues to 3 key features:
1
Shared Task Lists with Real-Time Progress Updates
2
Synced Group Pomodoro for Coordinated Focus
3
Progress Visibility and Interactive Updates
Our approach
One challenge we faced was how to integrate all the desired features without overwhelming the user or creating unnecessary distractions. After brainstorming various approaches, we concluded that organizing the app as a singular, central dashboard would offer the best solution.
This approach allows all key features to be easily accessible from the main screen, ensuring a clean, focused user experience while keeping everything organized and within reach.
Turning our sketches into lofi prototypes!
ITERATION
Keeping core tools accessible with split screens, and simplifying task input to reduce cognitive load.
Pre-polished SyncStudy draft
Our initial mock consisted of 4 main modules on a singular screen: personal todo list, synced pomodoro module, group progress bars, and updates. Users would be prompted to input all their todos beforehand, but would still be able to edit it during the session.
"My Todos" and "Group Progress" modules had the option to expand. This was important because since we went for an all-in-one approach, we didn't want to be confining a module into a very small space.
Issue #1: Although expanding a specific module increased size and content amount, it harmed user workflows by making the main pomodoro module unsable.
Current: Expanding a module would full screen
The primary issue that we surfaced involved an interaction detail we had overlooked. We included the "Expand" button because since dashboard real estate is divided into 4 small modules, we wanted users to be able to expand to see specifics of a module upon request.
The expanded module would take up the entire screen and grey out the pomodoro module, which was a primary feature. Instead, users wanted to expand a particular module's content while still accessing the pomodoro.
Iteration: Creating a "split screen" view between expanded module and pomodoro module
I proposed the solution of incorporating a "split screen" view that would allow users to expand on a module while not losing access to the pomodoro module—a feature they prioritized.
Issue #2: Unstructured task entries created extra mental effort for users and left observing study partners in the dark.
When inputting tasks, students had to manually remember to specify details like the subject/assignment type, often entering vague todos such as "finish module." This was an issue because….
Manually remembering to be specific increased mental effort, adding to the distraction problem we were trying to solve.
A less specific todo instance made it difficult for study partners to understand what each person was working on, weakening the accountability value proposition of the product.
Iteration: Introducing structured task input/organization with separate "Task" and "Category" fields
By splitting todo entry into “Task” and “Category,” we reduced cognitive load and instantly clarified context for every group member. Now, both students and their peers can see exactly what’s being worked on—making group motivation and accountability much more natural, and allowing users to keep their heads in their work instead of wrangling their lists.
FINAL DESIGN
Meet SyncStudy!
Key Interactions:
Expanding —> Split Screen View
Prioritize a view of "My Todo's" or "Group Progress" without losing sight of your timer.
LESSONS LEARNED
Growing through the BuildSpace program
1
Less can really be more.
I feel like product designers try to create products that are jam-packed with features, thinking that will actually solve user problems. One key takeaway from this project is how sometimes, the best solution is to do less (especially for productivity tools). It's important to focus on essential functionality that is tied to user goals without overwhelming their attention.
2
Small Interaction Tweaks Can Deliver Big Impact.
The most important iteration I made for this project regarded the module expansion view covering other important features. The solution was to make an interaction of a split-screen view. I learned that not every improvement requires a full redesign. Subtle changes in interaction design can dramatically improve the user workflow.
3
Taking Initiative to Solve Real Problems.
With low-code and no-code tools lowering the barrier to build, designers today have an unprecedented opportunity—and responsibility—to identify and solve meaningful problems in their community. SyncStudy started from recognizing the collective problem of group studying on campus. This project really reminded me why I fell in love with product design. I want to create tools to solve real people's problems, it's really that simple!