I have learned over the last several years that there are very few graduate student researchers with honed, effective time management skills. Most of my students have habits that lean to some degree toward concentrating large amounts of time on one exhaustive task, followed by some level of psychological resentment and exhaustion, which leads to a deep experience of self-doubt (“is this worth it?”) and under-confidence (“I can’t do this”). My wife calls these students “Binger Learners” because their ineffective time-management extends into their class work, their teaching assistant duties, as well as their proposal and thesis research. A fundamental trait of severe Binge Learners is stubborn pride and an unwillingness to embrace the discomfort of change. Yet, when these hard cases ‘face the music,’ ‘take their medicine,’ and work to address time management in their lives (that is, when they listen and act on it), their graduate school experience turns from frustrating and draining to satisfying and enjoyable. In this post, I am going to highlight a couple of examples from working with my students and some strategies for change.
Example 1: Many of my students organize their TA schedules to maximize large chunks of available study or research time, thus economically picking teaching-lab times that accommodate such a schedule. On the surface this seems wise, organized, and conscientious. Indeed, individuals must balance literature review, proposal writing, and presentation preparation related to their research with teaching preparation, grading, and studying for the classes they are taking. No doubt, large chunks of time to organize these chunks are at a premium. However, such a balance is often not the reason for organizing their schedules; instead it is revealed time and again that long periods are devoted to reading and preparing the day of classes that work is due. Students are binge reading at the last minute.
Such students are doing too much reading in one period, and the costs include not being able to digest material over time, exhaustion from intense effort, and no guaranteed time for other responsibilities during days of binge-reading. A solution is to carve the several hours of reading time into chunks and to allocate those carved up blocks of time across the days of the week. To do this effectively, there must be firm control of what readings need to be done and related process goals that can be checked off during the week. This requires dedication to stay on schedule. An advantage is that the student can then adjust schedules as needed if he or she is behind because there is time to shift the plan if progress is made early in the week. The term “week” does not refer to calendar weeks, but rather the time between regular class periods, as in “for a course that meets once per week, there is a week between class periods.” Another advantage is recurring satisfaction (as opposed to trepidation of impending doom related to facing a mountain of work prior to the weekly class meeting). Spreading out time spent on responsibilities is satisfying in (at least) two ways: 1) one gets the satisfaction of sticking to a routine, which is hard to do; and 2) one gets regular reinforcement that “work is getting done.”
Example 2: The first example refers to the relative short time frame of each week. However, weeks turn into months, which become semesters, which lead to wasted years. There is a longer time scale that comes into play for those students with binge-researching habits. My students commonly experience problems during the thesis-proposal writing stage of their graduate careers. The daily and weekly responsibilities (often done in bingeing fashion) suck up much of the available time and energy, primarily because there is no plan and no discipline. Unstructured time spent on teaching, classwork, and breaks for socializing lead to evaporation of time to spend on thesis research, which may lead to problems in reviewing literature, learning analytical approaches, initiating and completing lab research, and (if uncorrected) proposal and thesis writing. As a result, students commonly complement weekly binge reading with binge-writing in compressed periods just before deadlines.
Such students are doing too much writing in a period of several days under conditions of panic and stress. This leaves little time for thoughtful expression and no time for editing and re-writing. Binge-writing stems from an inability to prioritize daily work periods of two to three hours for thesis research (reading, analysis, writing… not to mention fieldwork, if required) in the mix of all of the other responsibilities that are to be handled. Of course, if the student is binge-reading, then she/he is exhausted from the panicked effort to keep up with classes, teaching, and relatively proximate responsibilities. Thus, fixing the binge-reading problem, any binge grading problems, and other time sinks provides regularly available chunks of time for pursuing longer-term goals of thesis research―actualizing long-term goals in the short term. Such organization of time is a hallmark of a skilled independent researcher. Thus, it is an expectation of mine that my students seek to become highly skilled in terms of time management. They know this, so an important question is “why is this benchmark so difficult to achieve?”
One reason is that students have trained themselves to cram during their undergraduate educations, which allows them to over-commit to multiple activities. Success in college, which got them into graduate school, has led them to believe that they have what it takes to be an independent researcher. This may relate to the label graduate “student.” It is true, these people are students, but many of them claim the aspiration of wanting to be researchers and desiring to obtain a PhD. In this sense they are more than students; they are in the process of becoming independent (and hopefully skilled) researchers. Successful independent researchers do not cram; they ask questions, develop plans to acquire relevant data, interpret results, and present conclusions. The goals of research require discipline, fortitude, and time management. Research requires digestion of the literature, mastery of analytical methods, and thoughtful consideration of the implications of research.
Despite regularly giving this advice, many students struggle to make regular progress toward their goals and instead leave important responsibilities to be done at the last minute. This leads me to suspect a second reason, wavering commitment. This problem is transparent in how students and faculty communicate about graduate school, and it is encouraged by the contemporary marketing approach to university education. Students are in graduate school to “get a degree.” A degree, however, is the endpoint of a process of learning that certifies that a student has the commitment and skills to claim expertise in a field. That is, degrees are not for sale in the same way that one cannot buy his or her way into a professional basketball league. Some aptitude is required, but those with high levels of talent will fail without commitment, discipline, and time management. It may seem cold, but if a person cannot demonstrate the follow-through to manage his/her time, I question that student’s motivation for being in graduate school (quietly, internally, and now by blog post).
What should you do if you suspect you are a graduate-binge-learner? First, be honest with yourself in two ways: 1) assess your habits and look for areas in which you can improve; and 2) question your desire to earn a graduate degree that marks you as proficient in your chosen field. Second, if your desire is honest, and you truly are inspired to learn (you simply have bad habits) relieve yourself of the pressure of self-recrimination. You have not failed; rather, your habits are common. Uncommon are those who become organized and skilled researchers. Third, seek to improve by reading up on time management, seeking and following the advice of your mentors, and encouraging other students to do the same. Fourth, develop a positive attitude. Recall that you do not have to earn a graduate degree; rather, make learning a curious endeavor that is a pleasure. And finally, patiently expect improvement, but don't take it too easy. This process, as it requires changing ingrained behaviors, will be uncomfortable; so expect gradual progress. Do not hold such a lofty standard that you set yourself up for immediate disappointment. This is an important process; when a researcher is at his/her best, nothing is more satisfying.
Example 1: Many of my students organize their TA schedules to maximize large chunks of available study or research time, thus economically picking teaching-lab times that accommodate such a schedule. On the surface this seems wise, organized, and conscientious. Indeed, individuals must balance literature review, proposal writing, and presentation preparation related to their research with teaching preparation, grading, and studying for the classes they are taking. No doubt, large chunks of time to organize these chunks are at a premium. However, such a balance is often not the reason for organizing their schedules; instead it is revealed time and again that long periods are devoted to reading and preparing the day of classes that work is due. Students are binge reading at the last minute.
Such students are doing too much reading in one period, and the costs include not being able to digest material over time, exhaustion from intense effort, and no guaranteed time for other responsibilities during days of binge-reading. A solution is to carve the several hours of reading time into chunks and to allocate those carved up blocks of time across the days of the week. To do this effectively, there must be firm control of what readings need to be done and related process goals that can be checked off during the week. This requires dedication to stay on schedule. An advantage is that the student can then adjust schedules as needed if he or she is behind because there is time to shift the plan if progress is made early in the week. The term “week” does not refer to calendar weeks, but rather the time between regular class periods, as in “for a course that meets once per week, there is a week between class periods.” Another advantage is recurring satisfaction (as opposed to trepidation of impending doom related to facing a mountain of work prior to the weekly class meeting). Spreading out time spent on responsibilities is satisfying in (at least) two ways: 1) one gets the satisfaction of sticking to a routine, which is hard to do; and 2) one gets regular reinforcement that “work is getting done.”
Example 2: The first example refers to the relative short time frame of each week. However, weeks turn into months, which become semesters, which lead to wasted years. There is a longer time scale that comes into play for those students with binge-researching habits. My students commonly experience problems during the thesis-proposal writing stage of their graduate careers. The daily and weekly responsibilities (often done in bingeing fashion) suck up much of the available time and energy, primarily because there is no plan and no discipline. Unstructured time spent on teaching, classwork, and breaks for socializing lead to evaporation of time to spend on thesis research, which may lead to problems in reviewing literature, learning analytical approaches, initiating and completing lab research, and (if uncorrected) proposal and thesis writing. As a result, students commonly complement weekly binge reading with binge-writing in compressed periods just before deadlines.
Such students are doing too much writing in a period of several days under conditions of panic and stress. This leaves little time for thoughtful expression and no time for editing and re-writing. Binge-writing stems from an inability to prioritize daily work periods of two to three hours for thesis research (reading, analysis, writing… not to mention fieldwork, if required) in the mix of all of the other responsibilities that are to be handled. Of course, if the student is binge-reading, then she/he is exhausted from the panicked effort to keep up with classes, teaching, and relatively proximate responsibilities. Thus, fixing the binge-reading problem, any binge grading problems, and other time sinks provides regularly available chunks of time for pursuing longer-term goals of thesis research―actualizing long-term goals in the short term. Such organization of time is a hallmark of a skilled independent researcher. Thus, it is an expectation of mine that my students seek to become highly skilled in terms of time management. They know this, so an important question is “why is this benchmark so difficult to achieve?”
One reason is that students have trained themselves to cram during their undergraduate educations, which allows them to over-commit to multiple activities. Success in college, which got them into graduate school, has led them to believe that they have what it takes to be an independent researcher. This may relate to the label graduate “student.” It is true, these people are students, but many of them claim the aspiration of wanting to be researchers and desiring to obtain a PhD. In this sense they are more than students; they are in the process of becoming independent (and hopefully skilled) researchers. Successful independent researchers do not cram; they ask questions, develop plans to acquire relevant data, interpret results, and present conclusions. The goals of research require discipline, fortitude, and time management. Research requires digestion of the literature, mastery of analytical methods, and thoughtful consideration of the implications of research.
Despite regularly giving this advice, many students struggle to make regular progress toward their goals and instead leave important responsibilities to be done at the last minute. This leads me to suspect a second reason, wavering commitment. This problem is transparent in how students and faculty communicate about graduate school, and it is encouraged by the contemporary marketing approach to university education. Students are in graduate school to “get a degree.” A degree, however, is the endpoint of a process of learning that certifies that a student has the commitment and skills to claim expertise in a field. That is, degrees are not for sale in the same way that one cannot buy his or her way into a professional basketball league. Some aptitude is required, but those with high levels of talent will fail without commitment, discipline, and time management. It may seem cold, but if a person cannot demonstrate the follow-through to manage his/her time, I question that student’s motivation for being in graduate school (quietly, internally, and now by blog post).
What should you do if you suspect you are a graduate-binge-learner? First, be honest with yourself in two ways: 1) assess your habits and look for areas in which you can improve; and 2) question your desire to earn a graduate degree that marks you as proficient in your chosen field. Second, if your desire is honest, and you truly are inspired to learn (you simply have bad habits) relieve yourself of the pressure of self-recrimination. You have not failed; rather, your habits are common. Uncommon are those who become organized and skilled researchers. Third, seek to improve by reading up on time management, seeking and following the advice of your mentors, and encouraging other students to do the same. Fourth, develop a positive attitude. Recall that you do not have to earn a graduate degree; rather, make learning a curious endeavor that is a pleasure. And finally, patiently expect improvement, but don't take it too easy. This process, as it requires changing ingrained behaviors, will be uncomfortable; so expect gradual progress. Do not hold such a lofty standard that you set yourself up for immediate disappointment. This is an important process; when a researcher is at his/her best, nothing is more satisfying.
