With the monotonous task of studying ahead of them, many students put on their headphones and enjoy some music alongside their productivity. Some worry that studying with music is a distraction but according to National University, music can help people concentrate while trying to remember things.
Anatomy teacher Mrs. Susan Fried says that listening to music while studying and then listening to those songs again while trying to recall the information can help memory and “helps get [her] in a good mental space and [she] can actually focus on what I’m trying to study.”
Senior Bryana Bennett agrees, saying that “studying with music helps me to concentrate better. Especially with so many distractions when I’m trying to study, it helps me to stay focused on what I’m doing because it drowns everything else out.”
Senior Ashley Kim says that for her, music marks the time. Listening to music as she gets things done is a way to “better sense time passing and helps me know I’ve been working hard for a long time.”
Even within those who study with music, students turn to a wide variety of different genres of music, including from those seen as sensible for studying, like lo-fi and EDM, to less traditional “study lock-in” genres like rap, pop, and Afrobeats. Fried recommended not listening to your favorite songs and choosing something different for studying. She says that for her, “listening to music like the Phantom of the Opera got me through college!”
Bennett similarly expressed how studying is a little bit more enjoyable when listening to instrumentals of her favorite pop songs without lyrics. For late-night study sessions, however, she tends to gravitate toward more upbeat music with the lyrics to keep her awake.
On the other hand, senior Katie Barber says “the type of music [she is] listening to while studying depends on the task.” For certain assignments, she might not listen to music at all, like if she’s writing an essay for English class.
“That being said, when the ads pop up, it ruins everything!” says Bennett.
