Postgraduate study - finding the right work, life, study balance!
Hannah Alipoor
Intercultural communication MA graduate
Hi I’m Hannah. I have a passion for languages and the way in which they affect a culture, or create cross-cultural confusion. I am currently carrying out part-time further research, whilst working full time at the University. In my spare time I love to read about current affairs and politics, as well as seeing as much of the world as possible!
Why I chose postgraduate study
For some, once they have got their 3rd year results it is a weight off their shoulders, and they can’t wait to get stuck into the world of work. For me, I felt that my student journey was being robbed from me, as I wasn’t ready to leave or stop learning!
Will I make friends?
When studying English and Linguistics we were quite a big group of course friends, I knew that this wasn’t going to be the same on my Master’s, as there were only six of us!
At first I was worried that this would affect my experience (especially graduation), but it was just as fun but in a different way!
Since none of my close friends continued their studies, it was harder to keep the same friendships that were so effortless and easy in third year.
I had lots of ‘spare’ time, whereas they didn’t anymore. This actually helped me work more effectively when studying, as I started to see it more like a 9-5 job. I tried to stop having the long student lie-ins, so that I had the evenings to have guilt-free Netflix binges or spontaneous nights out when my friends finished work.
Combining study and work full-time
I was lucky that I was a Senior Ambassador whilst I was studying, and had worked for the University for three years already. This meant that I had lots of experience, and had relatively regular work on campus. For me, being able to work on campus meant that I often arrived earlier or stayed later, and spent time in the library – 2 birds 1 stone!
What’s next?
Once I had completed my Master’s and had worked full time for a year, I realised I missed the excitement of writing an academic essay – so I decided to enrol on a part-time research degree. As my Master’s was taught, I had only ever completed two 10,000 dissertations, which is of course completely different to writing 80,000 for a research dissertation!
It’s not all work!
Now that I work full time, as well as studying, you will be shocked to hear that I still manage to balance my time and spend lots of it with my best pals! Although we no longer spend all of our waking moments together, like we did in halls of residence and our shared houses – when we do spend time together now we make sure we have the best laughs and the most fun.
We still have very late nights on karaoke, and epic Netflix binges, but it’s just a little less frequent, which I have learnt to love! It means we have loads to catch up on, and we can do more exciting things!
Flexible working
I work full time in the Schools and Colleges Liaison Service at the University, so work flexi time which can often mean evenings and weekends. This works amazingly for me, as I can then take a day off in lieu, and use it to be crack on with some reading!
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