My graduate school journey

So I was going to create a thread here about my grad school experiences and update it frequently, but I decided to just create a blog for it and update it there.

Ive created the first entry for my first day of class for my first class.

Ill answer any questions that anyone has here. Feel free to ask.

The URL is
http://jasonbernier.blogspot.com

Find more posts tagged with

Free for TechExams community: Cybersecurity salary guide

Compare cert salaries and plan your next career move

Button

Comments

RoyalRaven

Ah...I remember the feeling. The shine of grad school will wear off quickly! I liked reading your blog entry as it was something I could relate to.

I do have a bunch of advice now that I'm done.

Treat it like a job and it might be easier to grasp it. Go to every class if at all possible. Participate and engage with everyone (esp get to know your classmates - they're in the same boat!). Pay attention and contribute. Focus on short-term goals. Looking at the whole amount of work will frustrate you, but if you keep the short-term goals in check, it will all work out well and you'll get there before you know it!

The big key is to not treat it as undergrad work (which I remember mostly as lots of lecture, passive discussion, average work, etc)...but treat grad school as project work and something you're diving into BIG time. Cover what's required for class, but if you do a little bit of extra research on the side (semi-related), that gives you interesting things to bring up in class. If you show a passion in the subject material, it will do wonders for you and reflect well with the others in class. Grad professors practically beg for these kind of discussions to occur as it shows the class is engaged and learning the material in-depth. Sometimes the prof would let us run the class or two to show we're on-track (i.e. enpowering us).

The major point of grad school for the university is develop new research (which feeds studies, grants, funding, developing new professors, etc). Never forget this point. If you strive to bring new ideas, new thoughts to the table, you'll really enjoy it. Just try not to be passive and stick to the book..as it would then become a drag. It took me a while to figure out the difference between undergrad and grad myself, but once I did, it made way more sense and I enjoyed it even more.

Did I say network with your classmates? That's one of the best parts...you'll be working with some of them a LOT! They're your best allies now and well past graduation.

MrAgent

Thanks for the advice.
I am definitely treating it like a job. I plan on being thorough and paying attention to detail. The difference between my undergrad and grad school is that I plan on actually applying myself. I actually care about my GPA this time around.

Im not getting a masters to further my career specifically, as I am already in a pretty senior position -- though I do want to move into management, but I am more doing it as a personal goal. I want to learn more and apply it.

powerfool

Have fun!

I am glad that I am done with grad school... although I may punish myself again in the future (IT Project Management Post-Master's Degree certificate at DePaul and/or EMBA at Notre Dame).

All I can say is that you just need to analyze it in before each semester and figure out how you want to approach everything. Getting to know how an instructor ticks, early into the class, is paramount. Some of them are strict on some things and lackadaisical on others. I like keeping a spreadsheet of my grades that auto calculates and weighs assignments to keep me on track, too.

Best wishes.

the_Grinch

Good luck man! I'm suppose to be starting my grad school journey soon. By the way, that class looks awesome!

N2IT

Almost done with my MBA and looking forward to it.

Good luck on your journey.

lsud00d

The syllabus looks really interesting! How many credit hours are you taking this semester?

MrAgent

Its a pretty interesting class. I have a feeling I will enjoy it. A lot of the topics covered are things I have a great deal of experience in, so it shouldnt be so difficult.

Its a 3 credit hour class. I am taking 6 credit hours total. So just 2 classes. Ill be taking one in the summer, and maybe 3 classes in the fall. I'd like to get this knocked out in less than 2 years.

MrAgent

I just wanted to update and say that I updated my blog about my graduate school journey today.

Its been a pleasant experience so far.