Time to Complete Courses?

[acamp]

Happy Saturday all,
Just had a question for all the degree seekers (or any of you who are taking college credits).

I work full-time (I’m a teacher so usually at night I lesson planning), we have a large family that I love spending time with, involved with my church, etc.

With that being said, I find it incredibly difficult (disheartening as well) and nearly impossible to find time to work through study.com course, SL, CLEP (modern states) prep.

I consider myself very good with organization and time management but I still can’t get a system down to where I juggle working with actually seeing my family after work and then completing classes.

Any suggestions, tips, experiences from all the pro’s out there? I’m all ears

Thanks in advance!

[MNomadic]

Maybe try to incorporate your family with your learning. Not sure how old they are but try putting SDC videos(which are cartoons) on the big screen for everyone to enjoy.

[Tedium]

Someone else is probably much better at it than me, but in these types of situations one of the three things is going to have to suffer (work, family, or school). I don't think there is a way around that. Can't have your cake and eat it too, etc. I mean, there are only so many hours in a day.

As far as the process being disheartening, just view the situation for what it is, a temporary imposition in your life leading to better future opportunities. It may be very hard work now, but you won't have to do it again once you are done and have graduated, unless you want to.

I imagine most of us here have made some sacrifices along this path. I have. I don't regret the work, I regret not having done it sooner. I regret not working smarter and wasting time and money. As soon as I graduate, and finish what I started, I know I won't have to worry about those regrets anymore. That's just the way I view the situation.

Hang in there, kiddo. We're all in this boat together. You're not alone.

[armstrongsubero]

I agree with Tedium, the hussy or wifey, friends, social life and hobbies will have to suffer. You cant do everything, it is a sacrifice that you must make.

[Merlin]

Happy Saturday all,
Just had a question for all the degree seekers (or any of you who are taking college credits).  

I work full-time (I’m a teacher so usually at night I lesson planning), we have a large family that I love spending time with, involved with my church, etc.  

With that being said, I find it incredibly difficult (disheartening as well) and nearly impossible to find time to work through study.com course, SL, CLEP (modern states) prep.  

I consider myself very good with organization and time management but I still can’t get a system down to where I juggle working with actually seeing my family after work and then completing classes.

Any suggestions, tips, experiences from all the pro’s out there?    I’m all ears

Thanks in advance!

I struggle with this as well. Doubly so since I have a 2-year old who wants my attention constantly. I've had to make sacrifices to try and maximize my study time... in my case, this predominately means I rarely get more than 4-5 hours of sleep, since the only time I can dedicate to focus on studying is in the evenings after everyone else goes to bed. Luckily, I seem to be fine on lower amounts of sleep.

On the weekends we tend to be pretty busy going places like the ocean, zoo, or park, but I also try to sneak in a couple hours of study time when my daughter is napping.

I'll also download material to my phone to read while I'm out if I have some extra time. Like when I take a break between work tasks or during lunch, or while I'm on a train, etc.

When I'm on a time crunch (like a looming deadline) there have been times when I had to just close the door and buckle down in antisocial mode for a while, but I generally try to avoid doing that too often since a 2-year old won't understand.

I can't really offer any suggestions on time management, but it sounds like you have that covered... you just need to make more time to manage.

[Johmford]

Always start with things you know well and complete them to get the ball rolling.

Study.com - Pick things you already know about so you can only do the quizzes and then do the finals. Knock out as much as you can from your current knowledge.

CLEP/DSST- Do the flash cards and read the forum to determine what additional items you need to study then take the test. If you get a 50 or a 70 it typically does not make a difference. I have found DSST to be the easiest for me to study for and pass. I would try to fill in as many items as possible with CLEP and DSST.

Once you finish off all the things related to what you know then you will have better grasp on how to conquer the rest.

[bjcheung77]

Acamp, what degree do you currently have and which degree are you going after now? I don't recall that...
These are my recommendations - 1) Time management 2) Course overlap 3) Cancel all non-essential plans

What I have done for myself was the following:
I went on vacation first, then buckled down and canceled all non-essential outings for the next little while
I made a schedule/time sheet of my days and stuck with it until I finished all the required courses/exams
I took courses that had major overlap first, got the easy ones done first, and worked hard on the final ones

You have to make time for everything 1) Family first, 2) Work second, 3) School third
Take care of the family, work your scheduled shifts, and study when everyone's asleep.
I work at home, so I have a bit more luxury and can study a bit more than the average person
But when the kids are home, I am with them until bedtime, I study from 10pm to 2am and work at 8am

[a2jc4life]

I tend to do them as "crash courses." So I might not give any of those things much attention for 4 days, but I get a class knocked out and then go back to real life.

[dfrecore]

You know that old adage 'you can have it all'? Well, it's a lie. You just can't. That means that you have to decide which things are your priorities, and then go with that. Maybe you spend every lunch eating a sandwich at your desk while doing courses/studying for exams instead of going out to eat. Maybe you meal plan better and have spouse/kids help with more than they're used to. Maybe you don't watch TV for 6 months. Maybe you don't go on vacation for a while. You WILL have to give some things up to go to school.

With me, during the capstone, I spent every Monday sitting next to my daughter at the kitchen table studying, when I would rather have been doing other things. But, it was the best time in my busy schedule to do my studying, so that's when I did it. I tried really hard not to let life get in the way during the 4-6 hours I spend there.

I also spent my evenings after everyone else went to bed doing schoolwork (I'm a night owl). My husband is studying for an IT exam, he is a morning person so he gets up at 5am every day, runs, showers, then spends an hour studying before work. He also reads on the plane rather than sleeping like he normally does.

Point is, we all decide what's a priority, and then make the time for those things. You need to decide that school is a priority and just schedule time to get it done. Or not. You can also decide that everything else is a priority, and put school on the back burner for now, and decide it's a priority some other time in your life (or never). It's totally up to you.

[SophiaLearning]

Happy Saturday all,
Just had a question for all the degree seekers (or any of you who are taking college credits).  

I work full-time (I’m a teacher so usually at night I lesson planning), we have a large family that I love spending time with, involved with my church, etc.  

With that being said, I find it incredibly difficult (disheartening as well) and nearly impossible to find time to work through study.com course, SL, CLEP (modern states) prep.  

I consider myself very good with organization and time management but I still can’t get a system down to where I juggle working with actually seeing my family after work and then completing classes.

Any suggestions, tips, experiences from all the pro’s out there?    I’m all ears

Thanks in advance!

A huge portion of Sophia learners knock out their courses on mobile!  It's the "in-between" times like waiting for a soccer game/choir concert to begin; just log in and tackle a Challenge.  Hint: skip around to the questions you might have a better grasp on first to gain momentum.  : )  Good luck!  And oh, remember, Sophia offers 2 free courses.  Ancient Greek Philosophers is $149.  If you need 3 courses, use HALFOFF for 50% off your courses!  YOU GOT THIS!