Members > Student Members > APSSC Undergraduate Update > Balancing “Work” with “Life” in Psychology Graduate School: A Sampling of Strategies

Balancing “Work” with “Life” in Psychology Graduate School: A Sampling of Strategies

 
 

Jessica Schleider, M.A.
Harvard University

Graduate students in psychology are a self-selecting bunch: ambitious, conscientious, and curious, with hints (or more) of perfectionism. These qualities well-equip us to tackle graduate school’s heavy demands of research, teaching, and in many cases, clinical work. However, the very qualities that help us manage these responsibilities—that helped us gain admission to graduate school!—can complicate forging a life beyond the lab.

Of course, attending to work responsibilities is necessary for graduate school success. But maintaining well-being is equally crucial for productivity, both in and out of your program. This article presents several strategies for pursuing a healthier work-life balance during your graduate school years. This list is far from exhaustive: suggestions below draw from personal experience as a graduate student and conversations with classmates. Hopefully, some might prove helpful or spark ideas about self-tailored strategies towards making room for “life.”

Prioritizing Personal Time

  1. Stop justifying your need for relaxation. For some, this means committing to being “done with work” at a certain time of day. For others, it may involve scheduling “me-time” each night, dedicated to activities that calm you most, from a brisk run to a Netflix marathon.
  2. Pursue activities you enjoy with no inherent work-related rewards (e.g. making art, playing music, cooking, sports). Such activities can (a) direct your thoughts away from work (if only briefly) and (b) establish something to look forward to after a long day of work.
  3. Determine your ‘peak time’ for various activities. For instance, when during the day do you write most efficiently or most enjoy exercising? Build your schedule around peak times to help optimize your efficiency at work and your enjoyment of each part of your day.

Keeping Connections

  1. Close relationships with family, friends, and mentors are crucial to maintaining well-being. Social support has been shown to buffer the impact of stressors on physical and psychological distress (Turner, Frankel, & Levin, 1983). Social support has also predicted higher GPAs among clinical psychology graduate students (Nelson, Dell-Oliver, Koch, & Buckler, 2001). Ways to facilitate social connectedness as a graduate student include:
    1. Developing new support systems. Starting graduate school often means building new social connections in an unfamiliar place. Aim to form friendships within and outside your program. Seek out mentors willing to help you set goals and stay on track.
    2. Being honest with friends and family about the difficulties of graduate student life. Remember that others may not realize your program’s demands; express your needs so your loved ones can best support you.

Personal Health

  1. Sleep. Despite its great importance, sleep is notoriously easy to lose. It can seem prudent to postpone bedtime for productivity’s sake—to run one last analysis or catch up on e-mails. However, this strategy is virtually guaranteed to decrease the quality of your work. In their meta-analysis, Pilcher and Huffcut (1996) found that sleep-deprived individuals functioned at a level comparable with the ninth percentile of non-sleep-deprived subjects across cognitive, motor, and reasoning tasks. Bottom line: commit to a decent bedtime. Equip yourself to work at personal-peak quality and for fewer hours the following day. Remember that graduate school is a marathon—not a sprint.
  2. Exercise. Research indicates strong links between regular exercise and higher GPAs (Etnier, Walazar, Landers, Petruzzello, Han, & Nowell, 1997). Other studies suggest that exercise may help reduce feelings of anxiety and depression over time (Salmon, 2001). That is, exercise may boost productivity and well-being. However, committing to physical activity can be challenging. Having a “workout buddy” may help keep you accountable.
  3. Nutrition. Vending-machine dinners save time and money in the short-term. However, depriving your body of healthful fuel can stunt concentration and decrease productivity. On weekends, take stock of how many meals you will need to pack during the week. Grocery-shop accordingly, and spend an afternoon cooking enough for several days in advance. To avoid breaking budget, consider buying in bulk and opting for generic brands instead of commercial ones.

Workload Management

  1. Set personal guidelines for when to say “no.” During my first year of graduate school, I instinctively accepted every networking, collaboration, and service opportunity that came my way. Often, it helps to reflect on potential ramifications before accepting yet another opportunity (can I take this on without sacrificing my goals and health? Will similar opportunities arise in the future?). Thinking these through can render your schedule more manageable and distilled to the activities you value most.
  2. Minimize mindless internet browsing to boost efficiency. Block distracting websites; disconnect your Wi-Fi when it’s unnecessary for tasks at hand. Greater efficiency creates time to dedicate to yourself and your loved ones.
  3. Research is inherently slow, so celebrate your small successes. (e.g., get ice cream with cohort-mates when your IRB proposal gets approved; catch up with a friend after your syntax finally runs without 17 errors.)

Adopting these strategies may seem daunting—or, perhaps, like many more items for your to-do list. However, for me, overcoming ambivalence has been the toughest but most crucial step towards balancing my work-dominated routine. For help with this hurdle, consider asking fellow graduate students to make changes alongside you. Worries about work-life balance are near-universal among graduate students; your cohort-mates can make invested, empathetic allies in working towards a better-balanced lifestyle.

 

References

 

American College Health Association. (2008). American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment: Reference group data report, Spring 2008. Baltimore, MD: Author.

 

Etnier, J. L., Salazar, W., Landers, D. M., Petruzzello, S. J., Han, M., & Nowell, P. (1997). The Influence of Physical Fitness and Exercise Upon Cognitive Functioning: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 19, 249-277.

 

Nelson, N. G., Dell’Oliver, C., Koch, C., & Buckler, R. (2001). Stress, coping, and success among graduate students in clinical psychology. Psychological Reports, 88, 759-767.

 

Pilcher, J.J., & Huffcut, A.I. (1996). Effects of sleep deprivation on performance: a meta-analysis. Sleep, 19, 318–326.

 

Salmon, P. (2001). Effects of physical exercise on anxiety, depression, and sensitivity to stress: a unifying theory. Clinical psychology review, 21, 33-61.

 

Author Note

Jessica is a Doctoral Candidate in Clinical Science at Harvard University, currently in her fourth year. Through her research, she aims to apply knowledge of etiological factors—such as familial stressors and youth cognitive styles—toward mechanism-targeted, scalable interventions for youth anxiety and depression. Prior to her graduate studies, Jessica earned her B.A. in Psychology from Swarthmore College in 2012.