Time-Management Rockstars of SDN

[ObLaDi]

I have recently started working 50 hours a week and am taking 3 accelerated summer courses. I haven't been getting very much sleep (5-6 hours a night) and I am having some trouble adjusting to my new schedule. I get up at around 5:30 am, go to work, get home at about 5ish, have dinner, spend a couple hours with the fam, and then do homework from about 8-12:30 or so.

I don't see this scenario ending very soon. I need to have a full-time job, and I am not eligible for any student loans for undergrad, so that is not an option. I have about 2 years of pre-reqs ahead, so I need to figure out how to manage all my responsibilities while doing WELL in school. I do love my job though, and I am getting lots of experience in patient care and community health outreach, so at least that's a huge plus.

I know there are many people on this forum who manage to rock work, school, and family. What are your tricks? How do you deal with getting little sleep, and is it something you can get used to? Is there anything you can do to help yourself focus when you are really tired? Am I just screwed? I am really motivated and want to figure this out, so any advice you want to throw at me will be gratefully accepted!!!

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[NightGod]

I know there are many people on this forum who manage to rock work, school, and family. What are your tricks? How do you deal with getting little sleep, and is it something you can get used to? Is there anything you can do to help yourself focus when you are really tired? Am I just screwed? I am really motivated and want to figure this out, so any advice you want to throw at me will be gratefully accepted!!!

Lots of caffeine and I start about half of my mornings with an hour at the gym throwing around ridiculous amounts of weight. Catch up on weekends as much as you can. Learn to power nap (a 90 minute nap twice a day usually works out as good as 6-8 hours, at least for me).

 

[QofQuimica]

It's ok to acknowledge the fact that you're mortal. You need the amount of sleep you need; no amount of time management can change your physiology. I suggest cutting back on your courseload; three summer courses is a lot, especially with a full time job and everything else you have going on. If it takes an extra year before you can apply, so what? Everyone is always in such a hurry to finish prereqs and apply yesterday. Well, just keep in mind that the people who finish the prereqs with the best grades have the strongest med school apps, not the people who finish prereqs the fastest, especially if it requires them sacrificing their health and sanity to be able to apply a year earlier.

 

[ShyRem]

Everyone is different. Some folks need more sleep than others. Frankly, I did pretty much your schedule for my entire undergrad career but only because I was a total overachiever and was taking 21 credits of lab heavy sciences every semester and 12 every summer term. While I was not working, I did have to travel 3 hours each way every week to a specialist for an injury (no, there was no one closer).

I took little catnaps. That helped. I also maximized every spare moment of time. I studied during lunch. I studied while cooking dinner. I put notes on a PDA and studied while standing in line at the grocery store, bank, waiting in a restaurant. I studied while watching a movie with my family. I kept a quick "refresh" note page per class, adding to it as the course went on. It was my quick study guide. The writing was very small but it all fit on one page. I reviewed this in between classes - those ten minutes were vital to my undergrad success. I enlisted my family's help in studying at times by reading me flash cards. I put large pieces of paper up on the walls and drew pathways, chemical reactions, proofs for math class - and since my kids were small at the time, I put a paper up for them too so they would "draw" while Mommy "drew".

Most of all, I realized I was human. I took time on weekends to sleep in occasionally. If my family was awake and home, then I spent time with them. Sleep was my sacrifice, but I was able to go weeks at a time with only 4-5 hours of sleep a night. While difficult at first, I did get used to it. Perhaps having children was a good preparation for this - I was rather used to the "getting up after 2 or 3 hours of sleep" routine.

Not everyone "gets used" to a shortened sleep schedule. Take a good hard look at how you spend your time. Perhaps if your commute is long you should think about putting study guides on a CD and use your commute time for auditory learning. Even a spare 5 or 10 minutes here and there spent reviewing one or two concepts each can really add up.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

Even a 15-20 min nap can be incredibly valuable when really tired. It can be tough. I worked 70 hours a week and took 21 credits in the fall and 20 credits in the spring and ended with 3 As and 3 Bs for both. Learn to multitask. If you and your family go out anywhere, make her drive and bring your flashcards. Record lectures and listen to them when showering. Invent a way to study with your kids. It is tough, and I got used to 4-6 hour sleep nights. I slept when I could and weeks that were light, I didn't even think about getting ahead.

 

[LegendaryPunk]

I get a rough idea of what my schedule should be by looking at it from the perspective of a simple algebra problem:

Work + sleep + class + etc. = 168 hrs

Identify what is constant and cannot be changed (work hours), while also identifying what is variable (course load, whatever you do for fun, sleep...to an extent). No matter what you do, you're never going to get more hours out of the week than the rest of us; just work backwards until you solve for amounts that are comfortable for you. If you can't find a solution that doesn't involve cutting out every ounce of free time, reduce your course load. To echo what Q said (and you'll see this advice often) - better to finish over three years with a 4.0 than two years with a 3.5.

 

[phant0m0o0o]

I would say it would also depend on how quickly you can absorb material. I was doing about 26 credit hours a semester due to my loans and trying to quickly recovery from a bad GPA, free clinic and a part time job. What helped me the most was to choose overlapping courses that taught similar material for portions. I use to need 10-12 hours of sleep and was miserable the first 2 months of this, but now I am used to it and it doesn't phase me. Really I didn't think I was capable of it until I was actually going through with it.

 

[fastlane]

You might need to re-prioritize a bit and spend less time with the family until your classes are done.

I work full time and am studying for the MCAT and I can safely advise that you should also try to study during your commute to work, if possible. And nap a quick half hour after work so you feel a bit refreshed!!

Good luck!