It feels like I’ve been in graduate school forever.  I know this isn’t the case, but how many classes do I have left again?  Sometimes the reading and homework seem never-ending; no matter how ahead of my school work I get, I still have a billion more assignments and projects to complete before finishing. 

One thing that has helped me is reminding myself why I decided to go to grad school.  I completed my undergraduate studies and earned my bachelor’s degree because I love school and what I was studying, but also because going to college is something I was ingrained in my youth by adults in my life.  It just seemed like something I had to do as opposed to something that was optional.  

For grad school, I made sure this was something I wanted to do before applying to any school.  I knew it would be laborious and challenging since I’m also working at a job (that maybe wouldn’t be the most flexible at understanding my school schedule at times).  Reminding myself that I am doing this entirely for me and my own enrichment gives me the motivation to continue my studies.

And thus, with these thoughts in my mind, a new blog post was formed!  Here are some tips and advice that have helped me out as I navigate graduate school, work, and life!  As a reminder, I am a part-time graduate student who takes courses entirely online at the University of Denver.  My experiences, advice, and tips may not work for everyone since everyone is unique! 

Research programs & advisors

This one may be obvious, but do your research!!  Take a look at course requirements, syllabi (if available; if not, it doesn’t hurt to email and ask!), professors, class size and engagement expectations, etc.  Make sure the advisor you may be working with has enough time to work with you and your studies.  You definitely want an advisor who is present and able to help instead of one who makes no time to work with you.

Also, ensure the program you're looking to study is one that probably resembles your career or personal goals and interests.  I still don’t know what I want to do for my career, but I know I really like writing and communication.  I also know that I love art and art enrichment, so that makes my program a great match for me.  If the program you’re looking at just doesn’t seem appealing, it’s probably not the right one for you.

Find a designated study space

It’s so important to find a space that’s meant just for completing your school work.  I have a desk that I complete my school work on, but I only got it recently.  Before this, I did my homework on my bed, on the kitchen table, on the floor in the living room, and on the couch (and at the library pre-covid!).  Sometimes I still do my homework at these various places, just to mix it up, but I try to mainly do work on my desk.

It’s crucial to keep your work and rest spaces separate so that you’re not stressing in your resting places and remain productive in your workspaces.  Knowing that I do a majority of my school work on my desk means that when I lay in bed, all the stress and anxiety of school can remain at my desk.

Ask your professors for help

I get stressed out very easily.  Whenever I get assigned a huge project that seems so daunting that there is no way I’ll get it done on time, I just end up freaking out and thinking that it will never get done.  Then, I email my professors and they clarify the assignment and break it down so it’s much easier to work on.  It’s easy to forget that professors are there for you but they absolutely want to see students succeed and should be relied on as a resource!

Even if the question seems simple or “dumb,” ask anyway!  Knowing you reached out for help lets professors know that you care about your assignments and want to do well, too.

Do all the readings & assignments

OMG please do all the assigned readings and assignments.  Sorry to all my professors and teachers reading this (I love you though, thank you for your support!), but I didn’t do all the reading assignments in undergrad and it definitely hurt me in my studies.  There were times I didn’t do the readings and was completely lost in class, and other times where nobody did the readings, and thus the class period was spent learning about what we should have read the night before.

I think I would have gotten more out of undergrad and better understand the concepts had I done the readings more often.  For grad school, I make a conscious effort to do all of the readings.  Even if it takes longer than usual, I do this to ensure I’m getting the most out of my education and learning all that I can to succeed.

Grad school relies mainly on doing the readings and having class discussions on the reading topics.  I haven’t had a class in person since my program is entirely online, but I’ve heard from others that grad classes are just whole-class discussions on your reading.  

In conclusion, do your readings.  You will get more out of your education and overall find classes much easier to navigate.

Dedicate time to resting

Probably one of the most important pieces of advice I can give you is to set aside time to rest.  Sometimes I want to get everything done in one day, multitask different assignments and tasks, and push through while sacrificing eating or sleeping.  While this may seem to help at first, it really hurts in the long run when you’re exhausted and burning yourself out.  Dedicate time to rest and not think about anything school-related.

For myself, I make sure whenever I eat a meal, I set aside my school work, physically sit at a new location, and focus on my meal and whatever I decide to watch or read.  I used to watch mindless TV shows on Netflix that I didn’t really need to focus on, but I found that watching captivating shows such as You or WandaVision are actually more helpful because I can truly take my mind off of school and focus on something entirely different.  Find what method of rest works for you!

Make sure this is something you want to do for yourself

If you’re going to grad school to please others or because you’re bored and don’t know what to do with your time… you’re going to have a hard time.  I mean, at least in my opinion.  As I mentioned earlier, I often think to myself how completing my bachelor’s degree was for my family and for my parents, but this degree is entirely for myself.  Nobody told me I had to go to grad school; it was something I decided I wanted to do to better myself and my education.

If your primary motivation for attending grad school is to please others, then I think you’ll find that this motivation only takes you so far.  It’s not really sustainable for your entire school career.  Grad school is many many many late nights, homework after long shifts, endless essays and research projects, zoom meetings and virtual office hours, 100+ pages of reading per week, sacrificing free time for study time, feeling overwhelmed at your assignments, counting down how many classes left to graduate, a sense of pride after completing a difficult assignment, forming unexpected friendships with peers, gaining a support network from your professors, and learning so much about yourself throughout the whole process.

Is that something you want to do for yourself?

Did I miss any key tips or advice?  Did anything confuse or excite you?  Let me know!

Thanks for reading, friends!

Until next time.