Higher Education Anyone?

It’s weird in the past month I have gotten a lot of inquiries regarding how I managed to go back to school and finish my MBA while being a full time wife and mother and wannabe socialite…and since I have nothing ratchet to say today I thought I would drop some tips that may help somebody on their journey.

1.)    Make sure you know what exactly you plan to do with this new degree once you get it. Now if someone would’ve mentioned this to me I probably wouldn’t have gotten my MBA.  See, I don’t think I was ever cut out for corporate, I was forcing myself into the life and now I have debt and no intent to use my degree in the conventional sense of the word…and that’s fine. JUST HAVE A PLAN

2.)    Search out scholarships. I didn’t do this. I should’ve. I took out loans and paid some out of pocket but the money is out there. Take the time and look for it. Wouldn’t you rather give it to Goodwill, Benihana, or your bank account instead of Sallie Mae and her friends? I thought so.

3.)    Pace yourself. The race is not to the swift but to the one who….You know the saying. I started off determined to finish in 2 years. I burned myself out in the beginning trying to take 2 or 3 classes. Who was I racing against? I’m not sure but at the end I was taking one class at a time and it took me 2.5 years. In hindsight I don’t care if it would’ve taken me 5 years I would’ve had that time to spend with my family. The degree will be there. If you have children, they won’t be small forever. Ponder on that.

4.)    Use your time wisely. I used my lunch hours to do homework. If I rode the train that day I used that time as well. My goal was to do as much as I could before I got home so my family could have my attention in the evenings.

5.)    Take into account your best methods of learning. Having a family, career or active social life makes online learning very appealing. However, if you know you are a hands on type of person and need the structure of a class room seek that out. Online takes a lot of discipline and dealing with group work issues via Skype and email is a pain in the arse. SERIOUSLY. I wish I would’ve gone to class. It would’ve been more taxing but I think I would’ve appreciated it more and possibly learned more.

6.)    Use Amazon for buying textbooks. My foolish self was buying books from the school bookstore. Wow! It took me nearly a year before someone told me. Some books you can even buy rights to for like 6 months and read as well as print material offline for $20. Genius.

7.)    Don’t plagiarize, they have systems to check for that stuff now. One of my team members got kicked out of the program for that. Paraphrasing no longer works either. They run your papers through a system. A lot of schools are using it now. DON’T. DO. IT

8.)    Know your deadlines. If the GMAT will be required make sure you are planning at least a year ahead to allow for studying, taking the test and applying within the deadline for the term you are looking to enter.

9.)    From my understanding seek out a school that also has a physical location. Graduating from these types of schools makes you more competitive so I hear in comparison to online only schools *shrugs*

10.)  Don’t be scurred. If it’s something you want, go after it. It won’t be easy but what is?

Welp, that’s all I have. Good stuff, no? Do you have anything to add? Are you considering furthering your education?