I'm already burnt out

[indigoshuffle]

I'm in Analytics  Intro course. I am super excited to be working on this major (Data Analytics), but I get depressed whenever I read the online material, because I can never remember it. So far, the intro course is all reading ebooks. I read all this stuff and it just becomes an ocean of letters scrolling by on the screen. I take a quiz, and its like I never read the material. I'm good at guessing, but it would be better if I could remember the answers. The only way for me to memorize the material is to right it down, and then I remember it more like a photograph.  I am better at reading something, then doing something with it, then reading some more, and doing something with that. Reading, reading, reading, doesn't work for me. I signed up for another semester, so I will keep going.

You might try making flash cards as you read the material. Just the act of writing the questions and answers may help cement the info in your mind.

I can't tell you how underappreciated this method is. When I study, the more I resort to the "old ways" and shy away from fancy methods, the better my grades are. I wonder why.

[allvia]

You may also want to look around for online videos (YouTube, for example) specific to the course content. Many people do better with visual learning. There are a number of WGU student groups online, you may want to inquire with other student on visual learning materials.  I suspect if you read something, and then see it demonstrated  you'd find the information easier to recall.

[pluggingalong]

I basically quit working on my degree for 3 months, while I had extreme desires to be doing anything other than being an online college student. This is a period where I would have normally dropped out. I have apparently started doing my work again, and am getting back in sync with being a student. Part of my problem was being too isolated in my life. My major is Data Analytics, and I plan to stick with it because I want a degree a Data Analytics (and possibly a Masters). Are there any Data Analytics communities that WGU majors frequent? I thought maybe being in conversations with other people studying the same thing might help me socialize a little bit. An old friend of mine is in electrical engineering, and they have forums, societies, conferences, etc. Normally, I'm too independent to do anything like that, but it might make it less likely for me to mentally checkout again. I'm mostly interested in AI applications, so maybe I should look for something related to that, than Data Analytics itself.

[jsh1138]

Just chiming in to say my wife and I split up in December (last month) and I started at WGU last month too and I just do not want to be doing it at all right now. I have only gotten one class done and I thought I would have gotten maybe 6 done the first month.

It just is what it is though and I'm going to stick with it.

[pluggingalong]

Just chiming in to say my wife and I split up in December (last month) and I started at WGU last month too and I just do not want to be doing it at all right now. I have only gotten one class done and I thought I would have gotten maybe 6 done the first month.

It just is what it is though and I'm going to stick with it.

I've quit college many times before, but this time I'm determined not to quit. So, I basically just waited out my urge to quit. There wasn't even anything in particular that I wanted to do. Now, I am back on track.  One thing that helped was thinking about how getting a degree was going to unlock other potential things in life, and how that was better for me in many ways. WGU is also flexible enough that most people will be able to figure out a way to make it work for them, not many schools are like that.  One thing I am trying to do, is make sure I do other things than just WGU work.  I didn't need that the first 6 months, but I have more of a need to socialize now that I am aware it is going to take me 2 years to finish. I don't have any magic advice for you (or me), but I would encourage you to attack the problem of not wanting to do the schoolwork from as many angles as you can. While I wasn't doing schoolwork, I was thinking about why I might have such an aversion to it.  So I was either doing the work, or thinking about why I wasn't. Eventually, I just started doing the work again.

[davewill]

I will say that it feels amazing when you do graduate. I thought it would be no big deal as I was just "checking the box". In point of fact, the feeling of accomplishment was something special.

Keep your eye on the prize!

[LevelUP]

Just chiming in to say my wife and I split up in December (last month) and I started at WGU last month too and I just do not want to be doing it at all right now. I have only gotten one class done and I thought I would have gotten maybe 6 done the first month.

It just is what it is though and I'm going to stick with it.

I've quit college many times before, but this time I'm determined not to quit. So, I basically just waited out my urge to quit. There wasn't even anything in particular that I wanted to do. Now, I am back on track.  One thing that helped was thinking about how getting a degree was going to unlock other potential things in life, and how that was better for me in many ways. WGU is also flexible enough that most people will be able to figure out a way to make it work for them, not many schools are like that.  One thing I am trying to do, is make sure I do other things than just WGU work.  I didn't need that the first 6 months, but I have more of a need to socialize now that I am aware it is going to take me 2 years to finish. I don't have any magic advice for you (or me), but I would encourage you to attack the problem of not wanting to do the schoolwork from as many angles as you can. While I wasn't doing schoolwork, I was thinking about why I might have such an aversion to it.  So I was either doing the work, or thinking about why I wasn't. Eventually, I just started doing the work again.

The hardest thing is usually getting started.

Sometimes, it helps to give yourself permission to quit. For example, say, "I'm going to work on my degree for 10 minutes, and then I can quit whenever I want after that." Often, you'll find yourself working longer than 10 minutes.

Also, if possible, start school work as the first thing you do at the beginning of the day.

I'm excited again to be in school. I'm switching from BSSE to BSDA, and will stay enrolled instead of dropping out and taking BSIT classes at Sophia/SDC. I've been looking for a program that would lead to jobs I want to try, and reviewed all the WGU majors. It came down to choosing Mixed Cloud or Data Analytics. I've had a lifelong interest in AI, so I went with BSDA. I've worked for many years as a software developer and system manager in high-stress front-line jobs. As I finish my career, I want to do something less stressful, and more fun and creative.

If you can find things that give you purpose, then it will likely be more enjoyable to do
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...our-Ikigai

[bjcheung77]

Yes... Keeping the eye on the prize and also keeping the momentum going are the hardest, some people stall and take a little longer to re-start the process. Take the time to do as many alternative credits first for max transfer before embarking on the last hurdle at the institution you're looking to graduate from. The spreadsheet is a great tool to keep reference and tracking of your progress, another thing it does is give an ego boost each time you see you're one less class away from completion, whenever you finish each class!

[pluggingalong]

Yes... Keeping the eye on the prize and also keeping the momentum going are the hardest, some people stall and take a little longer to re-start the process.  Take the time to do as many alternative credits first for max transfer before embarking on the last hurdle at the institution you're looking to graduate from.  The spreadsheet is a great tool to keep reference and tracking of your progress, another thing it does is give an ego boost each time you see you're one less class away from completion, whenever you finish each class!

I didn't do any "alternative" credits, but I now see the wisdom in it more clearly. I was afraid of doing work outside WGU, and then not having it count.  My experiences when dependent on other people have caused me to always expect the worse outcome. The people at WGU, and probably most colleges, is that they want you to get credit and to succeed.  If I was going to do it all over, I would go ahead get as many alternative credits as possible. That's a good idea making a spreadsheet of classes to track your progress. It would also help me anticipate when I will get to some of the more "fun" classes.

[housecat]

<praise for java>

I would like to throw in here that Java does have some usefulness in Data Science. I have seen websites with analytics in the back-end making some nice predictions, fully automated.

There are a metric ton of jobs for Java developers, because businesses liked the "idea" of Java EE and how it has almost every feature you can ask for, and has more or less "support."

</praise for java>

However, this isn't 1999 anymore and Java is plain old and annoying, I can feel it in my soul, especially with Java EE. My advice is to just get a good programming "base language" and then you can learn better languages and systems later on, after the degree. C# is beautiful and will eventually gear up more so for AI, and of course Python is the best language right now for AI. C++ is also being used for AI in the field of image generation a lot. I've deployed some fun Python projects to Azure too.

Almost everything written even in Java SE runs and crashes out like an absolute dumpster fire for me, like most of the code I've had to write for it, Anaconda (don't get me started), Eclipse IDE (still radioactive garbage for 22 years, 2 months and 21 days as of this post, seemingly infinite half-life) and more. Except Minecraft. For some reason it has never crashed on me. Ok so one exception to the rule.

I personally have on my list to learn GO and Rust at some point. Languages are taught very well now at non-accredited learning places too, so don't worry, just struggle through Java for the learning sake. Think of it as an academic adventure instead of absolute blazing dumpster fire.

Also reflecting on my own AI journey I have accomplished so far, I could not have done anything with AI without learning to be a software developer first. It just wouldn't have worked out, it's such a good logical route. Also I should mention that I didn't speed run any of my software development or AI it was all SlowTrack.