If you’re contemplating grad school, you already know that it will be a difficult but rewarding journey. As I near the halfway point of my own grad school experience, I’ve collated a few survival pointers for anyone currently in grad school or contemplating making the jump!
1. Get your Assignments Straight Ahead of Time
It’s easy to assume that you’ll be able to stay on top of everything at the beginning of the semester before you take the plunge. You’re in grad school now! You’ve probably got all kinds of shiny new textbooks and notebooks, feeling ready to take this bull by the horns. Slow down, pardner! Before you go lassoing your scholastic broncos, take some time to read through each of your syllabi, taking note of every assignment and its due date. Once you’ve done this, I suggest setting up a spreadsheet or calendar where you can see all of your assignments in relationship to one another. Simply placing your schoolwork into a different spatial organization can completely change your perspective, and it will let you know when it’s time to hustle and when it’s time to take it easy. With this, you’ll never be taken by surprise by another pesky assignment again, and crossing everything off the list will help you stay conscious of you achievements. Go you!
2. Stay in Touch With Your Professors (And Fellow Students)
Don’t assume that you’re bugging them! These are the only people who know exactly what you’re going through right now, and their experience is a precious resource. Use it! Office hours exist solely for you to visit and consult with your instructors. Find potential study buddies from your class and set up a standing study period together, if your schedules permit. Allow yourself to benefit from the different perspectives around you, and if you let them, they will enrich your grad school experience, and your life.
3. Ask For Help
We have always depended on the kindness of… Well, maybe not total strangers, but Blanche DuBois might’ve been onto something. If you don’t ask for a little help now and again, you will find yourself being escorted to an institution (that probably doesn’t take insurance) for “exhaustion.” If you feel yourself being stretched dangerously thin, now is the time to call in every favor you know of. Now, if you’re a moron like me, it’s really hard to ask for help because you want to do it all yourself and be Superwoman. Of course, the truth is that none of us can do anything all by ourselves, and people love to help out. If the kids are driving you nuts, see if you can arrange a rotation of playdates elsewhere, or babysitters. Maybe you could ask your significant other, or a friend, to make a big meal with you and split the leftovers for later. If you’ve got one too many tasks on your plate at work, see if someone would be willing to pick up a little more slack. Asking for help also means talking to professors when you run into trouble. If you’ve had negative experiences with teachers in the past, this can be especially challenging. But you now have an opportunity to create a new, positive relationship, and you owe it to yourself, and your academic career, to give it another shot.
4. Find Time to Relax
“Relaxing? In grad school?!” you might scoff. I know it sounds simply impossible, but it’s good for your mental health or whatever, so it’s probably a good idea. Just for an afternoon, put your books under the bed, in the linen closet, or in the trunk of your car— whatever you do, just get them out of your sight. Now, take a breath. Read a (non-academic) book. Watch a dumb Youtube video. Do some yoga. Go for a walk around the block, or visit a new park to explore. Pack a picnic. DO NOT LET YOUR ACADEMIC TASKS CREEP INTO YOUR RELAXATION TIME. No flash cards, no homework, no nothing. I mean it! Taking regular breaks will go a long way toward keeping your sanity intact and your burnout levels low. So just chill, maaaaaaan!
5. Know When to Say ‘No’
I left the hardest one (for me, at least) for last. I’m a people-pleaser! I like making people smile, and I hate to disappoint. And sometimes I worry, ‘If I don’t do XYZ task/clean the blahblah appliance/make people happy, who will?’ The answer is: lots of other people can, and will! So if you’ve found yourself committed to one too many projects, or are getting bugged repeatedly to pick up more things, now’s the time to start gracefully declining and scaling back on your previous commitments where possible. If you’re not in the habit of saying no to people, some of them might be upset. That’s okay. The goal here is you walking across that stage to pick up your diploma, not managing Mrs. So-and-So’s feelings. And if somebody decides to criticize you because “When I was in grad school, I walked uphill to school both ways in the snow while 13 months pregnant and shouldering the earth upon my back for Atlas,” or something, tell them, “I’m glad that worked for you then, but that won’t work for me now.” Bust that phrase out like an ace up your sleeve in a card game, and apply liberally to busybodies and the like.
Hopefully you found some of my tips helpful! Let me know if I missed anything important in the comments below.
Isobel Robinson-Ortiz 