Blogs that do for my GPA what Get Rich Slowly did for my credit score

August 8, 2009 6:18 PM

Can anyone point me in the direction of blogs about succeeding in college and grad school? Bonus points if they're geared towards professionals working 40+ hours a week, instead of coaching teenagers through the nuances of dorm life.

What I'd like to have is a selection of blogs to pump up my RSS reader and help encourage, motivate, and direct me in my studies while reminding me that there ARE people out there taking harder courses and working longer hours, since...well...I can get discouraged. Advice, insight, tips are all welcome, and bonus points if someone can finally make GTD make sense to me. I’ve had great success in the past using personal finance blogs like Get Rich Slowly to motivate and educate myself about paying down debt and building up savings, and I'm hoping some decent productivity blogs geared towards college students will help me here.

Background on me: I'm a 21-year-old student enrolled in UMass Lowell's online BS in IT/Business Minor program, having completed about 60 of the 120 required credits. My company offers $10k a year in tuition reimbursement through undergrad and grad school, and $15k a year for doctorate courses, so the motivation is definitely there to take advantage of this benefit. This semester, I'll be taking five courses (15 credits) while working 40 hours a week -- 8 of these hours in an IT internship within my company. I'll definitely be busy and I'll definitely need the encouragement.

posted by lizzicide to Education (5 answers total)

The advice I received as an engineering undergraduate was that the number of hours worked per week + credit hours taken = 30, and that every class beyond that statistically correlates with GPA drops. The other rule of thumb is to spend 3 hours for every 1 in the classroom. 40+15 is already outside the formula's guide, and 40 work hours + 45 student hours + 56 hours of sleep leaves you with 3 hours daily for food, commute, personal hygene, etc. It's possible that IT/Business is lighter on coursework and studying, but in today's market you really need to make that GPA shine.

I know I'm supposed to encourage you, but people working full time jobs and studying as full time students frequently dropped classes, and were a real hassle to schedule project meetings with. If you want to avoid being a statistic, it's purely time management. If you can read or do homework on the job, that's a bonus. I'm assuming that a job with tuition reimbursement doesn't allow that however.

"and I'm hoping some decent productivity blogs geared towards college students will help me here."

I think "productivity" and "blogs" might be diametric opposites, but the only one I know of that comes close is lifehacker. A google search also pops up this, but it's fairly obvious:
* Throw away things you do not need (RSS feeds?)
* Find jobs amenable to students
* Slow the pace down
posted by pwnguin at 7:09 PM on August 8, 2009

Oh yea, and for grad school, locate a job as a teaching assistant or research assistant. You may have to apply to more than one school to find one that accepts you and offers a position.
posted by pwnguin at 7:25 PM on August 8, 2009

I'm a veteran student, but this blog still really helped me, even as a grad student:

http://www.calnewport.com/blog/
posted by zeek321 at 7:32 PM on August 8, 2009

I second Cal Newport's blog. I read it reguarly. You might also want to buy Cal's book. I think he has two books.
posted by qmechanic at 9:53 PM on August 8, 2009

Response by poster: zeek321 and qmechanic: Thanks for the nod in Cal's direction.

pwnguin: I mean, I've done it in the past and did pretty well despite the crunch. I'd just like to do it better this time, and with more cheerleaders. :)
posted by lizzicide at 8:03 AM on August 10, 2009