Balancing festivities and studying
Charlie Pickard
English Language and Applied Linguistics MA
Hello! I’m Charlie. I’m a Master’s degree student in English Language and Applied Linguistics. I studied my BA (Hons) in English Language with Creative Writing at the University of Huddersfield. I’m from Bradford and live in Halifax, not too far from Huddersfield. My interests include reading, writing, swimming and walking in the countryside.
I know how you’re feeling. Christmas is hurtling towards us faster than it’s ever felt before. Before you know it, Term One will have finished and we’ll be enjoying the festivities. You’ll be giving and receiving presents, enjoying great food and drinks and (hopefully) spending quality time with your loved ones. But… those assignment deadlines look awfully close, don’t they? And that exam isn’t as far off as it once seemed, is it? Yes, we’re approaching the wonderful Christmas period that we work hard all year to enjoy. But it acts as a double-edged sword. Just on the other side of it, Term Two revs back into gear and January is strewn with assignments and/or exams, for most students.
In this blog, I want to help you navigate these dangerous waters. Take it from someone who’s been through this for the past three years during my BA, and will soon be experiencing it again, along with all of you. Here are my five top tips to ensure that you manage to have a fantastic Christmas, without falling behind in your studies.
But… I must say that all of this could change depending on what happens with the rapidly-changing Covid-19 situation. As I write this, the Omicron variant is spreading across the world and the UK government have recommended people work from home where possible. It may be that this blog becomes redundant in the coming weeks, but hopefully we will still be allowed to do things and you can get some inspiration!
1) Before you have any fun, create a work plan
It’s imperative that you create a dedicated plan of work and free time over the festive period. Do this before you do anything else. You need to decide how much work you’re going to do, over how many/which days, and what work needs doing. For example, you might do five, ten or fifteen days of work, within a three-week period. You might take off just the three main days – Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day; or you might take off a whole week, up to New Year’s Day; or even a whole two weeks off.
Very importantly, set yourself work targets, rather than just time targets. It’s no use trying to work for three days but procrastinating and getting nothing done. It’s far more effective to set yourself targets such as reading some chapters, starting an essay or revising some topics, for example. Take as long as you need on these tasks until they are done – if you get them done sooner than expected, then even better.
2) Leave your work in a positive state where you can completely forget about it
Before you stop doing university work and kick back and relax, you must be happy with the state you are leaving it in. If you are leaving your work with several tasks completed and a clear plan of where to pick back up when you return after your break, then your mind will feel a lot clearer and freer, ready to completely enjoy Christmas.
On the other hand, if you don’t do enough work and leave yourself too much to do in too little time, chances are you will find yourself constantly thinking and worrying about your work when you should be relaxing. You might even be tempted to do work on days you had initially decided you weren’t going to. Clearly, the first scenario is much better than this one!
3) See what events you would like to go to and allow time for relaxation
There are so many things you can do over the Christmas period. From Christmas markets and Christmas shopping, to having meals/drinks in pubs/restaurants, to volunteering at food banks, you can make yourself very busy. Embrace the festivities and get full of the Christmas spirit. Alternately, you might want to keep things simple. Stay at home and watch Christmas films and TV with your family, or visit your relatives at a Christmas party. Relax and enjoy some well-earned downtime, or have some fun with your new Christmas presents. There is so much to do at Christmas, whatever your interests are, so it’s vital that you plan what you want to do with your sacred time off and make the most of it.
4) Make sure you stick to your work plan and don’t fall behind
Once the Christmas period is over, you might find yourself itching to get back to your university work. This is actually often the best way to combat any stress or anxiety you may be feeling regarding this. Whether you get back to your work in between Christmas and New Year’s, or straight after the latter, it’s important that you don’t wait too long. Stick to the plan you established in Step 1 and return to your work with a calm, clear mind. You won’t feel as stressed and it should be like riding a bicycle.
Get back into the swing of things and continue where you left off – without pushing yourself too much. Allow yourself to build up and develop a routine as you ease back into studying – you don’t have to go straight into eight-hour days the day after Boxing Day! Stick to your targets and you’ll be fine as we head into January and Term Two. Before you know it, you’ll be ready for your exams and handing in your assignments on time. If you do happen to fall behind, make sure you catch up as soon as you can and don’t allow things to get worse. The sooner you’re back on track, the sooner you can be successful.
5) Ensure you’ll be able to look back on a happy Christmas period
When the January blues are kicking in and you’re back to working hard and worrying about deadlines, you’ll look back at the Christmas period wistfully. This is why it’s so important that you make the most of it and create some great memories, whether they’re packed with adventures or you’re simply content staying at home. If you have a brilliant Christmas that you can look back on fondly, you’ll have no regrets. You’ll be able to focus on your work knowing that you’ve done things the right way.
You don’t want to look back on the Christmas period with any regrets, whether it’s that you didn’t make the most of it or do the things that make you happy; or that you did too much work and didn’t have enough time off. The time to work again in January will come around faster than you think, so ensure that you create marvellous Christmas memories while you can. It’s only once a year!
Personally, I’m looking forward to having some well-earned time off; seeing my friends and family (where permitted); enjoying the festivities; visiting some nice places; watching some fantastic Christmas films and TV shows; and staying on track in my Master’s degree.
I hope these tips will help you and give you some good ideas on how to manage the upcoming festive period, no matter what stage of the University journey you’re at. Thank you for reading, have a delightful Christmas and good luck!