Balancing Work And Study Top Tips
We know that most of our students work and study part-time, and how challenging that can be.
You want to learn English to improve your prospects and your experience while living in Ireland, but you need to work at the same time to sustain your lifestyle. It can be difficult to put the same effort into both tasks sometimes and at the end of a long work week you might not feel motivated to do classwork. We see you, and we hear you, so we’ve come up with some top tips to help you stay motivated and ensure success while you work and study at the same time.
1. Make a smart schedule and stick to it:
Making a schedule and sticking to it will provide structure to your days, ensuring you allocate time for both work and study. You should plan exactly what you will do when studying on paper or online. This means that you won’t feel guilty that you’re not studying while you’re in work because you know you made time to do it that day, and it also means that you know what tasks to focus on while studying and won’t waste time. You should be realistic when making a study schedule and include breaks and free time, to make sure you have a good balance.
2. Set boundaries with yourself:
This goes with the point of being realistic on knowing how much you can achieve on any given day. You won’t be able to choose your work hours or class times usually, you can only choose how to you use your free time after the fact. You should use the schedule you’ve made for yourself and make sure you set a hard boundary on what time to stop studying each day, making sure you get enough sleep and eat right. Remember, your body keeps a score! Your boundary could be for example that you don’t study after 9pm in the evenings or on sundays.
3. Take advantage of technology:
Use every tool you have at your disposal on this ESL journey, there are plenty of useful apps, tools and websites that can help you use your free time to study productively. We would recommend the following:
Duolingo: Language learning app where you can do lessons each day in your spare time.
Grammarly: American cloud-based typing assistant that helps you edit for grammar, punctuation etc.
BBC Learning English: Gives free resources for both English teachers and students like tasks and activities to practice English.
4. Use your free time productively:
You’ll often find that you have bits of free time on your commute or in the evenings that you usually use to scroll TikTok or watch TV or YouTube videos. If you do, you should use that same free time to help yourself study passively. If you’re learning English for example, you could watch your favourite binge-worthy TV show with English subtitles or listen to a podcast on a subject you enjoy in English. Listen to English songs in your favourite genre of music and see if you can you sing along!
5. Learn how to manage stress:
One of the most important things you should do while trying to balance a busy lifestyle with work and study is to learn how to manage your inevitable stress when it pops up. Hopefully, you have a good schedule where you’re getting enough sleep and free time, so you don’t get too stressed out, but when you do it’s important to take time to decompress. Do something fun, go out with friends or take a trip somewhere, watch a movie or even just take a nap. The important thing is that you zoom out and focus on yourself for a while, so that you can feel refreshed and motivated when you go back to work or to class. Rest should be valued the same way productivity as as the more well-rested you are, the more productive you will be!
Remember, your pursuit of English proficiency is an investment in your future, both personally and professionally. While the road may be challenging, the rewards of enhanced communication skills, better job opportunities, and a deeper understanding of the culture around you are worth the effort.
As long as you keep your goals in focus, work smart, and take yourself into account you really can do both!
If any of these tips helped you feel free to let us know on our socials by tagging us at @CorkEnglishCollege or by using the #CorkEnglishCollege