It seemed like a realistic goal wanting to go back to school after taking two years off to work. Seemed being the operative word. Finding the balance between work and school is seemingly much harder than I had originally thought.
Turns out in order to pay for school, I have to work, and in order to surpass my current position at work, I need to graduate from school.
The balance of school and work is a never ending cycle, at times rewarding, and others stressful. It seems that everything is always due at the same time. And during that same time, work is crazy because well of course everything has to always happen at the same time.
It is no secret that I work full time, while going to school. In fact, it makes me extremely proud of myself that I can handle such an incredible load at the same time. My current thought process for working full time while in school full time is that a potential employer will one day see how passionate I am, and how much I can handle at one time. That is given that I can manage to pull off an honours GPA, and keep my bosses happy.
The pros for working while in school is time management. I know that there are certain days of the week that are dedicated to school and ONLY school. This semester those days are Tuesday and Wednesday. I know that if I have to complete group work, or work on a presentation, these are the two days that I can stay after class and dedicate just to school.
I know that Fridays and Saturdays are the days that are ONLY dedicated to work. I make the money to pay my monthly bills, these two days, and spend extra time at work completing my managerial tasks. I have been so blessed to work with such incredible managers, who help me so much while I am in school.
And Sundays are the day I dedicate to myself and my own mental health. I look forward to Sundays. It is my one day weekend, where I get to sleep in, and see friends, or catch up on homework. I can get my laundry done, or buy my weekly groceries if I haven't found time during the week. Sunday is my balance. I find this day to be the most important day of my week.
Aside from building time management skills, a couple other pros of working while in school is money. I am able to save money while paying my bills. I find this to be rewarding especially since ideally I would like to purchase a condo when I finish school. For me this is a huge motivation to work. I understand for many students paying off their student debt is their first priority, however; for me, since I have worked while in school, I have no school debt. I find this to be a huge benefit as well.
Cons. Of course there are cons to working while attending school. It is draining. There are days, when I would kill a small animal for a chance to stay in bed the extra hour. There are weeks when I can't help but cry because there simply are not enough hours in a day. The stress builds up, and at times I feel like I cannot find it in myself to give 100% to anything I do. But those are the only cons.
Getting over any con about working while in school is easy. I view where I am now, and where I want to be in 3 years. I would not be able to accomplish that living off a student line of credit, and getting 95% on everything I do. In this day and age, I have to stand out from my fellow classmates. Holding down a good job, while making honours- for me, does this.
I wouldn't suggest that everyone tries to balance the two, however I think its a great idea to try. If it doesn't work out there is always the option to quit a job. I truly think there is nothing in this world that I cannot achieve if I put my mind to it.
I want to know how other people feel about working full time while in school. I mean every time I tell people how much I work, their mouths drop, and they wonder how I do it. All the while I am wondering what they do with all their free time?
Never once have I ever felt deprived of a social life. I see my best friends a few times a week, I drink, I go out, I take vacations, I see my family, I shop. Practically everything that anyone else does, I do.
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