Adult students often worry about finding the time and the inclination to go back to studying. Today, more than ever before, we are expected to continue our education throughout our lives. Jobs change, lives change and a continuing lifelong education can be important.
But many students contact us worrying that they will not have the time to study.
The very first question you have to ask yourself is –
Do I WANT to study?
Or
Do I HAVE to study?
Some people will have to study as part of their job and career, so will not really have a choice. Even if they don’t want to study, they will still need to fit the time to study into their life. If you are considering whether you want to study, then, again, you will still need to think about when and how you will study.
Secondly, think about your life, your family, your work and your hobbies. Do you have time to fit in studying as well?
If you are not sure, why not make a plan of your week this week. Think about what you are doing and when you are doing it.
- You may find that you don’t have a second to spare, but you may realise that there are times when you could fit studying in. Do you spend a lot of time watching TV at night? Do you have long lie-ins at the weekend? Are there ways that you could donate more time to studying? Could you get up an hour earlier in the morning and study?
- Be creative.For example,
Terry takes her daughter to an exercise class twice a week. While her daughter is in the class, Terry sits and drinks coffee in a coffee shop. Could she study then instead?
Jake has a long lie-in every weekend. Could he get up a couple of hours earlier and study? He also has to take long train journeys once a week, could he study whilst he is on the train?
Simon spends a couple of hours every evening watching the soaps. Could he cut down on this? Perhaps by studying every other night. Or only watching the soaps for an hour?
Marilyn only really has lunch times to study, could she go into the library or a quiet place and study while she eats her lunch.
These ideas might not suit you, but try and think HOW and WHEN you could study. How you could fit studying into your life.
- Be disciplined.Try and plan when you are going to study. If you decide you are studying on a Wednesday night. Stick to it.If someone comes along and asks you to go out that evening, decline, say you are busy. If you really can’t say that, then decide to study another day that week.
- Studying by distance learning can really help if you are struggling to fit the time in to study. It is flexible and you can work when and where you want to.Courses are also available online and by distance learning that may not be available locally for you to study face to face.
- Remember why you are studying.
- If you are studying for work, there is a reason – you want a new job, promotion or more money.
- If you are studying for enjoyment, it is because you want to learn something, to improve your knowledge, for your own mental health.
Always try and remember why you are studying. It can be hard to study, but if you can keep your eye on WHY you are studying this can help.
Life can be full and complicated and we are not always able to stick to exactly the same study plan each week, but if we can try and be flexible and disciplined, then we can fit studying into our lives.
... And remember, studying can be fun and interesting!
- For that extra help if you are already studying, try our Learning eBook.