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With the distractions of social media and other websites, staying focused on work is an ever-growing challenge in our world today. The pandemic caused students to take classes from home, which has led to a decline in face-to-face interactions. While the move to remote classes has been a triumph in inaccessibility; what if you miss that silent accountability that comes from studying with a friend? Enter “study with me” YouTube channels. Think of them like the Lofi Girl channel, only with a real person studying, sometimes with music and sometimes in silence. Videos can be uploaded in full, but some creators also post a weekly schedule of live videos that invite the audience to tune in at a specific time and connect with other users. What are these videos exactly, and why do people turn to them?
Ambiance Videos
Before talking about “study with me” videos, I want to briefly highlight one of my most helpful discoveries of the pandemic: “ambiance” videos. As a college student taking classes from home, I have struggled to find a way to mimic the background noise of libraries or other public spaces. These videos, usually lasting multiple hours, show digital recreations of libraries complete with fireplaces, coffee shops showcasing smooth jazz, and cabins during a rainy day, among other things.
These ambiance videos serve as good “white noise” that block out distractions from studying at home, and they can even provide a break in the silence or sporadic chatter of a real-life environment like a library. Videos like these can play in the background while studying since they don’t demand attention. In fact, that’s their whole appeal; these videos are not meant to be watched as entertainment, but to be experienced while studying or thinking through an essay topic.
‘Study With Me’ YouTube Channels
Looking for a more “interactive” experience? “Study with me” videos can be both live-streamed or pre-recorded, but either way, the idea of seeing another person studying with you might make you feel like you are part of a study group. Implicitly knowing that you are studying “with” another person, or at least feeling the presence of another person studying in your “area,” might help you focus on studying just like you might in a physical group study space.
Part of the appeal of these channels is the idea of creating an “aesthetic” to glamorize studying: each desk setup is fairly neat and organized, with fun additions like candles or string lights. Certain channels will post the types of pens and notebooks they use in the video descriptions if audiences want to mimic this same idealized version of studying. These videos can take place in a variety of locations; for example, TheStrive Studies has videos of studying at home as well as in a library setting, which lets audiences “personalize” the kind of ambiance they want to study in for each session. Videos may show the environment out the creator’s window, helping audiences travel around the world through their screens. Overall, “idealizing” studying can help make the process easier, since sitting down to do work might not be appealing on its own.
Some people also may like these channels because of the built-in timing systems that many “study with me” videos include. These videos are structured using different versions of the “Pomodoro Technique,” which involves structuring your study time into 30-minute-long intervals. In these intervals, you should work for 25 minutes straight, then take a five-minute break; this process is then repeated multiple times and followed by a longer break (( Boogaard, Kat. “Take It From Someone Who Hates Productivity Hacks— the Pomodoro Technique Actually Works.” The Muse. )) Some videos will increase these times, having 50 minutes of work with a ten-minute break, but the most important part is that the work is split up. This method is a perfect way to practice self-discipline while also rewarding yourself for working and combined with the added accountability of seeing someone else studying, “study with me” videos are a real help to people who may have trouble focusing when studying on their own without a plan or schedule. Even if you hide the video behind other open computer tabs while studying, most videos using the Pomodoro Technique include alarms to remind you to take a break.
Video titles are also often specific in their contents, defining whether there will be music or not, how long study breaks will be, whether there is rain and the total length of study time. This makes it easy for the audience to choose a video that satisfies their specific wants for each study period. Overall, “study with me” channels allow students to exert a level of control over their group work habits. While you can’t always expect that it will be rainy, or that your friend you study with will not talk to you and let you work, these videos allow for some standardization when you need it.
Ease Of Creation
While some larger creators have hundreds of thousands of subscribers, another highlight of “study with me” videos is their fairly low start-up costs. Of course, camera quality can always be improved upon, and some creators might add graphics like timers and motivational quotes, but the only thing you need to make a video is a camera and some motivation to study. Newer channels like Beyond Focus, which has 184 subscribers, may not have the flashiest graphics or music, but they have the same basic video format as more popular channels. No matter your budget, you can still help people study by filming yourself doing so.
If you decide to film your own “study with me” videos, the idea of studying on-camera may be intimidating to some people. However, most likely your viewers will be paying too much attention to notice your exact movements. The best part of making these videos is that you are multitasking as well: studying and filming at the same time means that you’ll get twice as much done in the same time. Plus, you can feel free to get creative with study times, music, and even desk decorations! “Study with me” videos are a perfect way to break into YouTube if you already have a lot of schoolwork to do.
Channel Recommendations
Any article on the popularity of “study with me” channels would be incomplete without some recommendations. Other than the previously mentioned channel TheStrive Studies, here are a few places to start your “study with me” journey!
Merve
Merve is a student in Scotland who frequently uploads “study with me” videos of her desk overlooking a beautiful landscape. Her videos typically don’t include music and she uses the Pomodoro method of studying. There are all sorts of different video lengths, with some stretching to 10 hours, and she also records videos of herself studying at libraries for those who want something a little different. Merve’s video descriptions explain that she hopes her videos will help audiences “avoid social media” while studying, and she characterizes the “rain, birds, typing sounds and the flipping of pages (and cars too, unfortunately)” as signs that she is studying with the audience at the same time.
Abao In Tokyo
The channel Abao in Tokyo exemplifies the connection between aesthetic landscapes and study motivation. His videos, which he uploads both with and without music in the background, vary in their filming location. Some of his study sessions feature stunning views like the Tokyo-Skytree at sunrise and Shibuya during the rain. Similar to Merve, Abao in Tokyo writes in his video descriptions that he hopes to provide companionship to students who are studying at home during the pandemic as well as help them see new places at a time when travel is difficult. This channel is one to watch for its variety alone, and the option to have music or no music lets audiences further personalize their study experience.
The Sherry Formula
The Sherry Formula is another “study-with-me” channel that offers videos both with and without music in the background. Her videos, especially in the recent months, have a very warm feel about them, with the thumbnails heavily featuring oranges and yellows — the perfect feeling for a study session on a cold day. These more recent videos portray a homey environment, and her workspace might feature a cup of coffee or a steam machine. Looking back in her catalog, The Sherry Formula also has videos showing study sessions at sunset or morning glimpses of a city. While The Sherry Formula has fewer subscribers than the other channels mentioned above, her high-quality videos deserve to blow up online.
Why You Should Try “Study With Me” Channels
The growth of YouTube has brought with it countless opportunities for creators, but some audiences may feel like there are just too many choices of how to spend their time. “Study With Me” videos are unique in that they don’t require all of your time; in fact, they are created to be background motivation for your own responsibilities. It’s incredibly simple to log on to YouTube and find a video that corresponds to your specifications.
Want a Livestream of someone studying for twelve hours at a time, with 10-minute breaks interspersed? There’s a video for that. Would you rather plan a quick, hour-long study session? You can watch an upload from StudyMD. The best part about these videos is their customizability. If you start a video and realize you don’t want to listen to the background music, you’re free to find many others that might better fit your study mood. Try out a couple of channels and see what you like, and you’ll be studying in no time!