Juggling Work and School

MSN Careers ran an article called Juggling Work and School that made me think I should take some time to sum up the experience. I'll come up with something all Doogie Howser Thoughtful.  Eventually.  But first, the point of the article:


How the heck do people manage to go to work, go to school, take care of their families and have a life? One student was quoted as saying:

"School is teaching me a skill set that I need to advance in my career, and the balancing portion is helping me learn to prioritize, barrel through challenges and fulfill commitments. All of those are invaluable assets on the job."

The consensus of opinion among my classmates is that we don’t. Have lives, I mean. My job didn’t really suffer. I made some accommodations in my travel schedule, and I asked to be reimbursed for Internet access when I was charged for it on the road. And sometimes it was my excuse for being cranky. Oh, and that week after my final I was logged on to the Student Link all day because I was worried about my grade.

My volunteering did suffer. Particularly during my travel-heavy times, I didn’t feel like I could give another night a week to volunteering when I was in the middle of papers and group projects and exam weeks.

My family time took a hit. I haven’t spent a real random Saturday with my nephew since the summer.

My time with friends took the biggest hit. I remember telling my friend Noah back in August that I’d see him New Years’ Eve. This turned out to be accurate. I think.

I really don’t know how people with spouses and children do it. Except that most people don’t have the luxury of choosing school instead of work. We need the employer to help with the tuition expenses.

There are five tips listed in this article on how to balance things and they all sound good. But as I am sitting here asking myself how I did it, Myself is only saying, “I dunno. I just did it.”