How to Balance School and Work

Balancing school work, your job, and personal life can be a challenge. Here are a few tips on how to succeed at both school and work.

1. Stay organized

Maintaining a busy schedule requires lots of organization, planning, and time management. Use a calendar or app on your phone to schedule all of your daily tasks to stay organized. Make sure to include all of your homework assignments, exam dates, study time, work schedule, extracurricular activities, and social plans. Review your schedule everyday and make adjustments as needed.

2. Learn how to prioritize

Knowing how to prioritize your school and job responsibilities is an important skill. Review all the tasks on your daily schedule and identify which ones are urgent and must be completed immediately, and which ones can be saved for later. There will be days when you can’t tackle everything on your list (and that’s okay), focus on the urgent tasks first, then the important tasks - everything else can wait.

3. Take care of yourself

When you are juggling work and school, it can seem impossible to take time for yourself, but it is important to have “me time” (even if you have to schedule it) to help manage your stress and keep from burning out. Try to always get a good night’s sleep, get fresh air, and take downtime from work and school to refresh.

4. Have a support system

Having a strong support system is critical when working and going to school at the same time. When challenges inevitably arise, don’t feel like you have to go at it alone. Reach out to your support system for advice and help.

5. Know when to make adjustments

Balancing a packed schedule will take time to adjust to. However, if you start to fall behind in school or are working too many hours at your job, talk to your boss and teachers immediately to explore ways to get back on track. If your responsibilities feel overwhelming for a prolonged period of time, it might be time to reevaluate your schedule.