Laura Phelan-Leeds shares her story of balancing studies and family life.
I began my studies in 2013 part time, I had 2 young children, a full time job and was pregnant with my third. I knew from the start I would need to manage my time well to find a balance between family life and university. At times I am not sure I always succeeded! Over the next 5 years I completed my foundation degree, then did a top-up before completing my PGCE in primary education. After having my third child I went on to have 3 more before completing my degree. After a couple of years working as a SEND teacher I have now returned to Worcester to complete my Masters in Education. So find myself again managing a family, work and studying.
Having just given birth to baby number 8 it is more important than ever that I manage not only my time well but also my expectations. My advice to anyone studying with a family is be realistic and give yourself a break. You can become disheartened when you hear people say they have spent all weekend reading and you have struggled to find an hour or two, remember you are not in a competition with them, everyone’s circumstances are different so it’s OK that you haven’t done the same as them, but you will need to learn to be selective about what you choose to read.
Spend your time wisely and set yourself limits and realistic targets for both roles as student and parent, I found my family gave me the motivation to carry on so making sure I spent some time with them was critical, both to keep my sanity and also remind me what all the stress was for. Everyone works in different ways, for myself it was important to have dedicated time to complete my studies so that my family knew what to expect. There were times I felt like I was failing as a student and as a mother which is why making time for both is so important and always ask for help when you need it.
Maybe like in the picture you have to hold a baby after feeding while listening to your online lecture or make sure you have journals printed so you can read them as you watch the kids swimming lesson, work out how to grab those little bits of time as they all add up! Each little thing is a step towards your goal and yes you will ultimately get there, each little battle and struggle will be overcome by just doing the next problem in front of you. If you can keep doing that, they all ultimately end up behind you.
I know sometimes it’s not easy to see it at the time but it is not impossible.
