Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Education

How to Make your Postgraduate Studies Work for You

Higher learning is considered the best level of education that anyone can get. Studying for a degree takes time, especially at the undergraduate level. Even as such, this is a good foundation for the student to manage his studies even after he graduates. An undergraduate degree allows the student to get employment or start the journey of their career, leaving room for advancement later. As one continues with their professional journey, there comes a time when they have to go back to school, albeit part-time, and study something that will guarantee them advancement in their job. It could be that they are looking for a promotion or something else.

Going back to school while working can be a hectic affair. The postgraduate degree requires one to have excellent skills to balance the multiple deadlines and assignments as well as the requirements of their day job. It can be hard at times, and the student must learn how to solve their problems. The best thing is to ensure these studies work for you; your time management skills have to be on point so that you do not lose on one end and gain on the other. Strike a balance. It may be hard, but it is the only way you can manage your postgraduate course.

If you are considering going back to class on a part-time basis, then you need to know how best to manage your studies. If you are working, you have to decide the best way to approach classwork and the assignments that come with it. This is a big step to take, and failure is not a risk you are willing to take. The following tips would help during your studies.

Pick a subject about which you are passionate

You need to pick something that you are passionate about and will enjoy reading. However, there is a catch. You need to step back from the subject and view it from an impartial perspective. You have to be critical with your work because this is a postgraduate degree you are pursuing. For instance, you need to be in a position to write an objective dissertation on any subject of your choice without favoritism. Remember that bias is a scourge in the academic world and, more specifically, in postgraduate studies. You need to be sure that you can critique any work within the course in which you choose to pursue a postgraduate degree.

Get ready for copious amounts of reading

Postgraduate studies have a lot to do with reading, especially around your subject. As such, you need to be sure that you can hack extensive reading and can go down avenues that you find on your own. In most cases, you will be working independently, and as such, you have to find new and better ways of doing things differently. For instance, when you are planning for your dissertation writing, you have to pick a stance and come up with a few points for you to investigate. As you do this, you will discover new ideas that may not have been obvious previously. As such, you need to be ready to read as much as possible.

Give yourself a head start on your reading

At the postgraduate level, you need to give yourself a good head start on reading because it puts you ahead of the game. Remember, you are trying to have a good balance of other responsibilities, and most of the time, you will be busy. As such, create time to start reading ahead as you get used to the language and study skills necessary for your course. Reading a little will help you, and you will get a grasp of the concepts that await you.

You will also be learning terminologies and vocabulary that you may not have come across hitherto. In other words, you do not want to start your postgraduate course unprepared. This is something you will be proud of as time goes by. Your studies will not take you by surprise, as one may think. As such, you need a good head start through the reading ahead.

Formulate an effective plan and stick to it

Now that you are going back to school, you will have competing priorities. As a part-time student, you have responsibilities in your professional life, and this move to pursue a postgraduate degree comes with its obligations. How do you navigate such a situation? Scheduling effectively becomes essential because you are switching mindsets. You are always moving from home to work, and later to class. You have to figure out different ways that you can save time. Your studies are essential, and so is your job. You need to pay bills and school fees, making it hard for you to drop one thing for the other.

Planning is important. You can talk to your boss about your idea of going back to school so that you can be excused after spending the better part of the day doing your job. If your boss takes personal development in high regard, he is likely to allow you to get off work early so that you can prepare for your studies. However, this is not guaranteed, but it is a good starting point. This makes your classes bearable, and you can balance your work and your studies.

You also need to dedicate some time to your family. If you are a family person who is working, you have to create time for your people. Studies may become important, but your family is crucial too. This is why you need to ensure there is a definite plan to which you need to stick for the duration that you are going to be in school. Figure out ways that you can save some minutes from organizing class projects, assignments, meetings, and so on. This can happen on or before class commences. Take some time to pick up a book or two from the library. You also need to think about how and when you are most productive with your studies. If you are a morning person, capitalize on that.

Creating rapport with fellow students and professors

One of the things that will make your studies bearable is the kind of relationships that you build while you are a student. Even though this can be daunting at times due to the responsibilities that lie ahead, you need to be on good terms with fellow students and tutors, even if you are heading directly to work after lass. If you could socialize with classmates, it would be better, even if it were over a cup of coffee or lunch on campus. You are required to know your professors as well as acquaint yourself with various research areas within your department. If you are off-campus most of the time, try to find time to meet your classmates and even your tutors. This helps you a lot in understanding the people and the environment in which you are studying. Remember that you are chasing a goal that not many people find easy to achieve.

As such, you need to make time to build relationships, even if it is only for a few minutes. It helps a lot because you are not alone, and there are people whom you can rely on if things tend to become hard. A postgraduate degree comes with its fair share of vicissitudes, but in the end, what you achieve will remain with you for the rest of your life. Build relationships and ensure you interact academically with your fellow students, especially when it comes to collective projects. Professors are fond of giving collective assignments to students, and as such, good relationships will help you and your classmates work on this task easily.

Decide on the best study environment for you

If you are not very busy in your career, you need to identify the best enjoinment that you can use to study. The postgraduate degree demands that you be on your toes and manage your time well. Finding the right environment means getting away from work and being less distracted from your reading. Sometimes you can have the library work for you because there are minimal or no distractions at all. You will not have classes every day, and at this point, you can maximize the availability of a library, whether in school or a public one within your locality.

Here, you will make a considerable amount of progress with your studies. One important aspect here is to not try to replicate what you see your friends doing. What might work for them does not indicate that it will be the same for you. You need to come up with your rhythm and stick to it. If you are working from home, you can have a “do not disturb” sign at the door of your study room. You do not want to entertain anything that would throw you off your academic game, especially now that you are juggling work, family life, and school.

Talk about your work with others

In most cases, independent learning works best at the postgraduate level. However, that does not mean you shut people out. If you want to have a good time pursuing your postgraduate degree, feel free to talk about your work with others. As a result, if you dislike group projects, having discussions with your peers, friends, or even family members may help you gain perspective. You need to avoid tunnel vision, where you focus too much on a single aspect. This might make it hard to look at the bigger picture, especially if you are miles into your research. You need to get out of your groove and engage with others occasionally. You never know; it might be a way to find a loophole in your theory, or anything else that you have not noticed before.

Create and maintain boundaries

If you are working full time and going to class part-time, you need to have boundaries. You need to have a clear divide between your professional work and academic work. Even though this is not going to be easy, it is beneficial. When the time comes, you can focus on your professional responsibilities, and the same is true for your academic tasks. You need to set aside days that you can spend on your postgraduate studies because the studies are flexible. You can schedule meetings with your classmates for your academic tasks. If you need to switch to academic mode at a particular time, do it and ensure there are no distractions.

Your employment does not have to suffer just because you went back to school. Once you establish clear boundaries between your studies and professional responsibilities, it becomes easier to manage everything. Both situations are beneficial to you, so make sure they are well taken care of.

Always be ready to work hard

You are venturing into waters whose depth is unknown to you. As such, you need to be ready to wade through the tides and ensure you remain afloat in both your work and your studies. You might not expect an increase in the volume of activities when you compare undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Brace yourself, because you are about to have a new experience with your studies. Remember that your career development is dependent on this degree. As such, you should be ready to take on any challenge that comes your way. Of course, it is not going to be a walk in the proverbial park, but it is worth everything you have.

Pace yourself

If you want your postgraduate studies to work for you, pace yourself. Avoid making mistakes by charging into these studies headfirst, because the pace may be too fast for you. If you are working, you risk the chance of burning yourself out, especially if you do not have a definite plan for your studies and work. You need to figure out what works for you. Be comfortable with both your professional and academic sides. Establish the best study pace for yourself and ensure you factor in some time to relax, regrettably.

You can schedule some fun activities to break away from the norms of the class and the responsibilities of your professional life. This will give you a better perspective on what you want to achieve with your studies and how far you want to go in your professional life. In most classes, postgraduate studies are meant to advance someone either in their profession, where this is in terms of promotion or in their academic life, where they want to further their education because they have a chance. As such, pacing yourself in both instances would prove beneficial in the end.

Make enough time for your professional life

It is recommended that you take your professional life as another module. Even though you are a postgraduate student, there are many opportunities for you out there. As such, do not think there is no time for your professional life. You can work on your career development in the evenings or on weekends. You can also dedicate time, say, a weekend per month, to looking at other opportunities that are out there. Even as you continue to pursue your academic goals, keep an eye on the applications and interviews. This ensures that even if you are in class, chances are someone is not passing you by out there.

Look Ahead

If you are a part-time postgraduate student, it would be very useful for you to look ahead and ask your full-time friends about the modules that are there. You also have a chance to see them go through the dissertation writing process first and, as such, benefit from their experiences. Even so, don’t plan too far ahead of time; instead, prioritize your interests. This will help you gain the additional experience necessary for your studies.

It may feel tough to venture into postgraduate studies when you are still working. However, there is nothing that comes easy in this world. Find a way for you to strike a good balance between your professional responsibilities and your postgraduate studies. The above pointers would help you a lot if you could apply them. If you want to move forward as a student, you need to take this risk, but ensure your studies can work for you at any moment. Go forth and study hard!

Written By

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You May Also Like

Education

Owning a business means taking on risks and facing challenges that are potentially unique to you. It requires substantial knowledge and experience that can...

Education

Higher education plays an indispensable role in the growth and progress of a society. Without higher education, a society can’t survive and live in...

Education

In the modern age, we all tend to take the idea of education for granted, but it was only during the dawn of the...