How many hours do you work per week?

[doctorold]

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How many hours of work do you average every week?
I average about 55 hrs/wk and I'm only taking 5 credit hours this semester. I really find hard to focus on my 2 classes when I'm pulling 5 (12hr shifts) per week. I know I shouldn't find it very challenging like this, knowing that there are other people in this forum juggling a full time job, and taking full-time classes.
Do you work full-time and go to school full-time? How do you do it?

 

[dogfish]

I'm not "pre-med" yet; I'm currently attending a tech school and transferring next semester...that being said, maybe my opinion isn't as relevant as many others. That's up to you. But, here it is.

You said, "I know I shouldn't find it very challenging like this, knowing that there are other people in this forum juggling a full time job, and taking full-time classes."

I don't think that it's fair to compare yourself to others. How well you will be able to juggle it is going to depend on what your job is, your home life, your personality, your study habits, etc. No two people are going to have the same situation, thus, trying to compare yourself to everyone else is absolutely useless in my opinion.

If you think that it's something you should be able to manage, however, for personal reasons -- not based off the fact that other people do it -- then perhaps it's time to re-evaluate some things, such as your study habits. Look at what other distractions you have in your life, too, and decide if there's anything you can minimize or omit.

I plan on working much much less next semester when I transfer so that I can focus more of my attention on school. I'm sure there are probably plenty of people who would do otherwise, but I think that part of success comes from knowing what works for YOU and especially what your limits are. It's also about prioritizing....what kind of grades do you want/expect, how much actual free time is important to you, etc.

 

[GreenDuck12]

I honestly don't know how very many people who work full time and take classes full time. I would venture a guess that the majority of non-trad students do one or the other and that most of those work full time. Not all hours at every job are created equally and not all shift structures are created equally. I think the more important factor is not necessarily the amount of hours but how they are structured (in a few days or every day, in short shifts or long shifts, is there a short commute or long commute, is there a lot of down time for rest or does it require all of your energy and focus). Additionally, not all credits are created equal either. I find my 4 credit chemistry class to be much more difficult than the 20 credit hour semesters I would take with liberal arts classes because science does not come as easily to me as the liberal arts did.

The important thing is to NOT bite off more than you can choose. Being busy is good. Being overworked/burnt out/struggling/miserable is not. There are plenty of non-trads who take one class a term for the majority of their post-bac journey that end up being admitted to medical school.

How many hours of work do you average every week?
I average about 55 hrs/wk and I'm only taking 5 credit hours this semester. I really find hard to focus on my 2 classes when I'm pulling 5 (12hr shifts) per week. I know I shouldn't find it very challenging like this, knowing that there are other people in this forum juggling a full time job, and taking full-time classes.
Do you work full-time and go to school full-time? How do you do it?

 

[Dr.TonySoprano]

40-45

 

[Spriteling]

About 40. This semester I'm only taking one class (organic I lab). During the summer, I took three classes (10 credits, I think?) and worked full time. It was hard. Really, really hard.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

I work about 45 hours/week as a web developer and am going to school full-time fulfilling prerequisites this semester (Ochem, Phys1, Chem2). I have near perfect scores in all my classes but this is the hardest I have ever worked in my life and I really am starting to feel it. Monday through Thursday I am either travelling, at school, or at work from 7 am until 10:45 pm. Fridays I work 10+ hours (and go out for some socialization!). Saturday and Sunday I study and get all my school work done for the week (at least 7 hours/day) and sometimes I teach yoga classes and preventative medicine type nutrition classes at a local community center.

Definitely have my overwhelmed moments but the end of the work/school is near! I look forward to medical school and being able (for the first time in my adult life) have the majority of my focus in one area.

 

[ConfusedChemist]

How many hours of work do you average every week?
I average about 55 hrs/wk and I'm only taking 5 credit hours this semester. I really find hard to focus on my 2 classes when I'm pulling 5 (12hr shifts) per week. I know I shouldn't find it very challenging like this, knowing that there are other people in this forum juggling a full time job, and taking full-time classes.
Do you work full-time and go to school full-time? How do you do it?

The full time/full time student combo is not that common, and rarely works well
I do 16-17credit hours (nearly all upper year science) +20-25 work and I wouldn't wish more than 10hours/wk on anyone in school full time

 

[wholeheartedly]

I don't think it makes sense to compare yourself to others, or compare hours worked and credit loads. There are too many other variables that come into play. The key is finding the right balance for you and your job and classes. It might vary by semester also.

One of my busiest semesters of undergrad was one where i had 12 credits. Some jobs are long but not taxing, some are shorter but extremely exhausting. I work fulltime and go to grad school, it is absolutely exhausting. I just put one foot in front of the other.

 

[Firegrove]

My job was ideal for an undergrad. I worked as an EMT-B with PRN status so while I usually worked 24-36 hrs/week when taking classes the majority of it was on-call time. This allowed me to study while "working" and when I did get called in I racked up hours and earned some great patient experience.

 

[holdthemayo]

I was working 40-50 hours a week and taking 8-12 credits a semester for my post-bac which could get pretty crazy at times and it can be hard to change gears from "work mode" to "school mode." If at any point my work had started to interfere with my grades then I would have cut back hours immediately.

I recently reduced my hours to closer to 25 a week. Not because it was interfering with school but because my spouse requested that I cut back at work to spend more time at home. Work/Life balance is also important (even if you aren't married) and has at times been even harder to find a healthy balance for than the school/work balance.

 

[Gulliver Dark]

50 hours required (which I get pretty well compensated for). I've taken 12 credits for the past few semesters. Only 8 right now. Hoping that doesn't look bad, but I think the working full time+ thing should mitigate that.

 

[Mad Jack]

How many hours of work do you average every week?
I average about 55 hrs/wk and I'm only taking 5 credit hours this semester. I really find hard to focus on my 2 classes when I'm pulling 5 (12hr shifts) per week. I know I shouldn't find it very challenging like this, knowing that there are other people in this forum juggling a full time job, and taking full-time classes.
Do you work full-time and go to school full-time? How do you do it?

I worked 30-50 hours a week during my premedical coursework. It sucked. Cost me my engagement, actually. But I made it through with >3.8 gpa.

 

[RoadNurse33]

I worked a 56 hours work week, took anywhere from 8-9 credits per semester. I always did two classes per semester. The hardest was the year I did Chem I/II with labs, and Physics I/II with labs. That sucked. Until O-Chem and Calc came the next year.

The good news is, once you get into school you can finally just focus on school and your mental health priorities. I've had more family time now, with waaayyy less stress, than I did during my previous 3.5ish years of prereqs.

 

[redj]

Working about 20 hrs a week while doing 15 credits currently. Taking ochem 1 wi lab and some upper division nutrition classes. Would lose my mind if i did 40 hrs and full time classes.
Will probably cut back next semester even more while starting to study for mcat.

 

[hopefulERdoc251]

I worked 30ish hours while taking 20-22 credits during my senior year. It was quite possibly one of the hardest things I've done (hooray for working till 3am followed by a philosophy class at 9am!)

 

[redj]

I worked 30ish hours while taking 20-22 credits during my senior year. It was quite possibly one of the hardest things I've done (hooray for working till 3am followed by a philosophy class at 9am!)

GD!

 

[Trying2BMD]

.

The important thing is to NOT bite off more than you can choose. Being busy is good. Being overworked/burnt out/struggling/miserable is not. There are plenty of non-trads who take one class a term for the majority of their post-bac journey that end up being admitted to medical school.

So glad to read this..
I work 40 hours a week and usually take 2 classes in the Fall/Spring and 1 in the summer. I always feel like I should be able to handle more classes bc I see my piers (who are 10 years or so younger than I am) with full loads. I have to remind myself that they probably still live at home with their parents while I have a mortgage, a husband and an 8 year old daughter that also requires my time. I dropped Chem this semester because I was struggling and contemplated taking Chem again by itself but I felt I should be doing more. I need focus on passing even if it means taking one class at a time, and not worry about trying to keep up the Jones's

 

[jl lin]

-

 

[glepurple]

I work 40-50 hours a week and I average 9-14 credits per semester. It is difficult until you get a solid plan that works.

 

[Dr.Tao]

I was once told by a senior adcom member that when it comes to med school admissions, you either want to work or go to school. I realize that this is not very realistic for the typical nontrad with familial obligations (which is why I put things off myself), but I think it bears repeating here. However, I resigned from a 50-60 hr/week gig in August specifically so I could make school my #1 focus.

The most successful applicants to med school seem to be the ones that had a singular focus on school which DUH, allows them to make great grades/MCATs. No matter how you do things work/school, and LOT of work/little school, ect, you MUST make sure that earning "A's" is the end result, especially if you're a non trad doing grade damage control.

 

[Iwanttopulloutteeth]

It's been really difficult for me to get into the A range for pre-reqs while working. Right now in gen chem lecture/lab and physics lecture/lab, I'm hovering in the 80s. I feel like if I only had classes and wasn't working it would be pretty easy to wiggle my way into the 90s, but maybe that's just me coping and making excuses. I'm really trying to find ways to maximize my studying efficiency, because right now it seems like I'm mostly covering semi-low yield stuff that only pops up on half of the exam. Maybe it's time for me to start going to office hours weekly and offering my professors back rubs

 

[SempFi007]

I work 36 hours a week on the night shift and I'm taking 18 credits this semester. I don't know what I was smoking when I did that... But my job (mobile ICU paramedic for a local flight program), more often than not, has some downtime for studying and/or sleeping. Remember in Men in Black when Zed says they're a on 37 hour day? That's basically how it feels.

 

[jl lin]

I work 36 hours a week on the night shift and I'm taking 18 credits this semester. I don't know what I was smoking when I did that... But my job (mobile ICU paramedic for a local flight program), more often than not, has some downtime for studying and/or sleeping. Remember in Men in Black when Zed says they're a on 37 hour day? That's basically how it feels.

Yea. As an RN, I am envious of this as there is really little to no time on the job to squeeze in any serious study. Wouldn't go over well either. 🙂

 

[SempFi007]

I hear you on that one. I was contemplating getting my ADN to have a better paying job while finishing up my bachelor's/pre-reqs, but we're a hospital based program, and I see on the floors that the nurses have no downtime at all, especially the ICUs.