I’ve officially made it halfway through my graduate program, I could feel and see graduation looming! It has definitely been quite the ride, filled with lots of ups and downs. After having taken 5 years off after completing my undergraduate degree I wasn’t sure if I would get back into the swing of being in college. Luckily as soon as school started, I got back into the groove of being a student again, and have come to learn some valuable lessons that I think will benefit those who are considering graduate school.
- Be sure you apply for a graduate program that is the right FIT for you. Grad school is lot of hard work and the last thing you want to do is dedicated your time to a program that you do not love. If you have a specific career path that interests you, I recommend connecting with folks in said field and asking them about their graduate experience, they may open your eyes to potential programs. Also, DO YOUR RESEARCH, most programs have a coordinator of some kind who could provide you with information on a given program.
- Form a study group. While finding the right folks to study with could take some time, I have found it really beneficial to meet up with classmates and do our homework together. There’s comfort in working together and having friends to commiserate with or share a few laughs in between study sessions.
- There is strength in numbers! A lot of times we as students share the same concerns or questions regarding a specific topic or assignment but we choose to keep things to ourselves. This last quarter many of my classmates shared their concerns via email to our professors regarding assignment deadlines and clarification. Since so many of us shared our concerns with our professors a few of our assignment deadlines were extended. This lifted a huge weight on many of our shoulders all because we decide to speak up.
- If your program assigns you a faculty advisor GO SEE THEM! Faculty advisors are meant to help guide and support you as you work through your program. Having an advisory is the perfect opportunity to connect with someone who is working in the field you are studying in and could possibly help you land a job after grad school.
- Stay on top of your schedule! It’s really easy to fall behind, so I recommend using a calendar or planner of some kind to stay on track. I live on my Outlook Calendar, I put EVERYTHING on there, deadlines for homework assignments, when I need to do my class readings, when I have study sessions and all things work related. Outlook also lets you color code your meetings and set-up reminders that are either within 15 mins of an a given event or as much as 2 weeks out.
Even though grad school has me reading almost 100 pages of material every week, writing several papers at once or doing hours of research I wouldn’t change it. I’ve made some great friends and I’m been taught by some amazing professors and above all I’m in a program I love, so again be sure you find the right program for you.