Achieving work-life balance with a full-time job can feel stressful enough. Add to that the responsibilities of grad school and it may feel downright impossible. So why bother taking the leap?
In today’s job market, the benefits of a master’s degree are clear. Not only can a degree help you gain specialized knowledge that advances your career, but it can also make it easier to transition to senior-level positions, increase your earning potential, and enhance your professional network.
Employers take notice, too. According to one report, 33 percent of organizations prefer to hire people with master’s degrees for positions typically held by those with only a bachelor’s. That’s great news for degree holders, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts an 18 percent increase in the number of jobs that require a master’s degree over the next three years. Even better: Advanced degree holders will earn an average of $1.38 million more than bachelor’s degree holders over their lifetime.
If you’re still on the fence about deciding to pursue a graduate degree, rest assured that with proper planning and focus, managing grad school and work will be easier than you think. Here are six tips to help you make it happen.
Grad School or Work: 6 Tips for Balancing Both
1. Pick The Right Program
The key to striking a balance among work, grad school, and your personal life is finding a program that best suits your needs—both academically and logistically.
Finding a Program That’s an Academic Fit
It’s important to really research the programs you’re interested in to be sure their goals and objectives meet yours. Gather information both by reading all offered materials and by gaining some first-hand insight into the way the programs operate. To do this, seek out current students and faculty, and ask about their experiences and what you can expect during your time in the program. Keep all your research organized and review it in-depth before making a decision.
Finding a Program That’s a Logistical Fit
Working professionals must take into account their work and personal schedules when considering grad school, as the pursuit of a degree will be a time commitment. However, there are an array of program format options that students can choose from to best align with their availability.
For example, nighttime classes may best complement a nine-to-five job, where those who want added flexibility and minimize commute times—or simply want to explore programs further away—might find that online classes offer the flexibility they need. Universities like Northeastern offer an array of full-time, part-time, online, hybrid, and on-ground graduate programs to best fit the needs of all working professionals, no matter what those needs may be.
2. Manage Your Time
People today pride themselves on their ability to multitask, but research shows that it doesn’t actually make us productive. In fact, multitasking hinders our ability to get our work done effectively. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), jumping from one task to another can actually cause a 40 percent loss in productivity. For this reason, it’s important to know how best to manage your time when balancing graduate school and work.
Avoid the “Planning Fallacy”
The most common culprit of stress for grad students is the “planning fallacy”—or overestimating the time it will take to complete short tasks, and underestimating the time it takes to complete projects. To avoid this, the APA suggests keeping track of how you spend your time. Account for every hour in your week, whether it’s showering, working, commuting, cooking, or sleeping. When you need extra time for assignments, review your logbook and reprioritize.
After tracking how you spend your time, it becomes easier to establish clear boundaries, which can help with time management, as well. Map out a schedule that works with your prior commitments the night before and stick to it. If you allot 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. for coursework, for example, don’t start late at 7:30 p.m. Likewise, resist the urge to burn 10 minutes by checking email or social media during your dedicated study periods. If you need extra help staying on-task, there are a variety of mobile and desktop applications that will let you block certain sites for a period of time to stop you from procrastinating.
Practice Risk Management
Joe Griffin, Associate Vice President of Business Development and associate teaching professor in the Master of Science in Project Management program at Northeastern, suggests that, to balance work and school, grad students should identify risks, analyze them, then plan a risk response strategy.
“This could be as simple as realizing you don’t work well at night,” he says. “Plan a coursework strategy that mitigates the risk of unproductivity. Set aside time in the morning for working and let people know that is ‘your’ time. Set up a process that works for you—even if it’s at 2 a.m.—and stick to it.”
Experts say that utilizing all three of these suggestions—knowing how to avoid planning fallacies, establishing study boundaries, and practicing risk management—will help you manage your time better and achieve that optimum work-life balance.
3. Find ways to Apply Coursework to Your Career
In some instances, it’s important to keep your career and school work separate: You shouldn’t check work email during class, and you shouldn’t complete assignments during work hours. In the right situations, however, combining the two can actually be beneficial and ultimately save you time and energy.
Likely your professional work and your studies are closely related, so when you’re assigned projects in graduate school, consider how they may relate or could be applied to your current job. Perhaps there’s an opportunity to highlight a case study at work or brainstorm ways to develop new processes or workflows within your department.
Putting your coursework into practice or tying your work to your assignments will allow you to better understand the parallels in what you’re learning, a practice which will come in handy post-graduation, as well.
4. Make Time for Yourself
It’s tempting to prioritize grad school responsibilities over everything else in your life—it can feel like a lofty, expensive commitment that deserves top billing in your day. When you’re learning how to make time management work for you, though, it’s important not to forget to take breaks for yourself.
This might mean spending an hour reading a book you enjoy, going for a walk, or zoning out while watching TV. No matter what that “break” looks like to you, though, your brain needs this the time to unplug. Then, when you return to your responsibilities, you will be able to do so with a more energized and refreshed mindset.
5. Tap Your Network For Support
Managing grad school, work, and your personal responsibilities alone won’t be easy. Be candid and upfront with your friends and family about your new schedule, and learn when to ask for help. These key people in your life—including your coworkers and supervisors—should be informed of any conflicts that may arise due to coursework or study times. Maintain an open line of communication with them in order to keep your relationships from becoming strained due to this added layer to your life.
Your network extends beyond those people closest to you, however. Lean on classmates and faculty who can best relate to grad school experience. Knowing you can reach out to them when you’re struggling with a concept or assignment will help ease your mind when you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just remember to return the favor, and be helpful and open to others who may be experiencing the same struggles.
Real-World Example: Scott Whear, a grad student pursuing his Master of Science in Project Management degree at Northeastern, was worried that pursuing a graduate degree would be difficult and stressful, but quickly learned that, with the right support system in place, it didn’t have to be. “With all the resources and committed staff that Northeastern has, you’re getting the cream of the crop to help you every step of the way,” he says.
Creating and maintaining effective relationships—both personally and professionally—takes work, but doing so can have a lasting positive effect on your grad school experience, and make balancing school work with your career a lot more bearable.
6. Keep Your End Goal in Mind
While navigating the balance between grad school and work can feel overwhelming at times, it’s important to remember to take a step back and think about why you started. Whether you enrolled to earn a promotion, get a raise, or transition careers altogether, taking the time to reflect on that can help inspire you to continue working hard in pursuit of your goals.
What’s more, if you can learn to effectively manage your time, balance your responsibilities, and enjoy this opportunity to connect with the best in the industry, you will graduate with more than just a degree—you will leave your program with skills that have value that extends beyond your time in school.
Consider all these strategies for balancing work and grad school, then take the next step in your professional journey.
Credit: Northeastern University Graduate Programs, Grad School or Work? How to Balance Both