Studies and work: how to organize yourself?

It may seem like a difficult task to balance studies and work. But did you know that the majority of graduate students do this?

A significant portion of this percentage can be attributed to the ability to work or do an activity throughout the day. The job or internship may provide the opportunity to put the knowledge learned in the classroom into practice, in addition to helping the family’s finances and paying for living expenses.

You want to know how to organize yourself to study even when there is no job market.

Planning is the rule!

The psychologist Aline Pin Valdameri explains that planning is the key to working, studying, and maximizing free time. Students receive assistance in organizing themselves through free psychotherapeutic appointments, which may be weekly, biweekly, or as needed by the individual student. Check out a few Aline’s suggestions for organization:

Make a weekly schedule of your activities. Emphasize those with fixed schedules and free hours;

• List all the activities you need to do;
• Organize in order of priority: do the activities that are urgent first, then the most important, and finally those that you can perform in a longer period;
• Distribute your tasks on free days and times;
• Book some times to relax, watch your favorite series or read a book. After all, your mind also needs oxygen to be able to face a busy schedule;
• Set a bedtime and wake-up time and stick to it. Your body and mind need rest.

A wise tip is to make the most of your study time. Learn to study as a result. I suppose! Learn study techniques that will make it easier for you to learn, such as creating mental maps to organize information if you are a visual learner. Create a study schedule that includes all of your required assignments, tests, and other activities.

Try to complete everything in advance. Studying the night before a test is not studying; it is reviewing, according to Aline.

Discover some options for paid activities

Formal work – is that job vacancy with a formal contract, which guarantees you monthly income and other rights provided for in labor legislation, such as vacations, 13th salary and deposits of the Guarantee Fund for Length of Service (FGTS), and collections of social contributions that provide you with social security benefits in case of disability or add length of service to your future retirement.

Informal work – is paid activity, but without a formal contract. It could be work that you do for someone else or your initiative to produce something that generates income. For example, you can work with the resale of beauty products, with home maintenance services or develop a craft product.

Paid Internship – is an opportunity to perform paid activity in your training area. It is usually the first step to enter the job market or to change your field of work to something more related to your field of study. Paid internships are regulated by legislation that limits daily activities to six hours and guarantees paid recess, for example.

Volunteer service – is an opportunity to take advantage of your free time to carry out activities in your area of study. Thus, you gain experience and put into practice what you see in the classroom. It is not a paid activity, but it can be a chance to improve your resume and, in the future, enter the job market.