I have been asked by students over the past few years what advice I would give to them as they begin the journey of graduate studies (or continue in them) so I thought I would pass on some of what I have learned as a graduate student (as well as working full-time and being married) that I believe can assist in helping you become a successful student. * Always work ahead. If you know you have 10 books to read during the semester, start early (talking to myself here as well). And if you finish one early, begin the next. If you know a test is coming up, don't wait until the night before to begin studying - start preparing for it early. This will give you more time to soak in the knowledge while not being incredibly stressed out the night before a test (you can actually get some decent sleep by doing this).
I'll give an example - last fall I was out of town every weekend from the first week of class until the end of October. That translates into about 10 weekends in a row that I was unable to do homework on weekends - which is a huge time for graduate students to get stuff done. In order to open up the weekends for me so I didn't have to find a corner to punch out accounting figures or read a book at my brother's wedding, work events or family activities, I would do homework at night during the week after classes. Now some people might not find this very appealing, but I believe having weekends open to do more than just homework is much more appealing than going home after class and vegging into front of the TV watching So You Think You Can Dance.
* Set early deadlines. This kind of applies to working ahead - when you know the deadline for submitting a paper, set an early deadline for yourself to finish it...like maybe a week early. This will give you time to review it several times, make all those nice grammatical corrections, and make your paper spectacular.
* Engage in the classroom. Don't just sit there. Be a sponge. Ask questions. Apply what you learn in the classroom to your life.
* Enjoy the process of learning. Don't wish away the class or count down the weeks until it's over. All that will do will leave you anxious. Instead, take in all you can and live in the now. It will do you no good to look so far ahead that you can't see what's directly in front of you. Enjoy the journey.
* Give yourself a night off. It does no good to burn yourself out from studying. I always try to schedule Friday nights as my night off from studying (unless of course it's finals week or something major is coming up the next week). Again, this kind of coincides with working ahead so you can have the night off, but do it. It will refresh your mind and allow you to be more focused later on.
* Get to know people in the program. Don't be an island. The people in your classes all have busy lives too, but they can be an immense encouragement to you during stressful times. Some people come from far away places, some have years of experience, others have families or careers or both. Get to know them - especially since you will have group projects in nearly every class. Making connections now with your classmates can lead to a lifetime of friendships and connections around the world.
* Pray. Perhaps being in a graduate program already lends itself to giving you great opportunities for increasing prayer in your life, but this is definitely a time in your life that you don't want to forget to pray. Pray for your classmates, your professors, your families and friends, yourself...cast your cares to the Lord and trust in Him (but apply yourself too). He's got everything under control - even in the most stressful of times.
I know this is going to be a fantastic year, full of amazing discoveries, and memories along the way. And when you don't feel like doing that homework, just remember this is only a season and it'll be worth it in the end! (I know I will probably need to be reminded of this myself somewhere during the semester.)
Whether we're ready or not, it's time to welcome in the 2010-2011 academic year!
Very wise advice from a successful student.
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