sustgradgirl

[sustgradgirl]

Semester 1 Start VS Semester 2 Start

I had mentioned in one of my earlier posts that semester 1 of grad school was rather...exasperating. It was hard throwing myself back into studies after 2 years off, not to mention throwing myself into a degree that required more knowledge and understanding of data than I was accustomed to. I called it ‘academic whiplash’. I felt better knowing I had some peers who were going through similar struggles, and we were able to support one another knowing this. 

I just started semester 2, and I am pleasantly surprised at how much different and confident I feel going into this semester. Knowing that I am capable and can ‘do this’ has made the start of the semester so much more reassuring. 

Moral of the story, don’t be afraid to go back to school, at any stage. whether it’s for an associates, bachelors or graduate. You’re capable!

#grad school #graduate school #gradblr #masters degree #mastrblr #student

[sustgradgirl]

I like this, a lot. Listen, you can romanticize studying all you want, but it can be an absolute slog fest. It can be messy, irritating, but all the same rewarding. If you think you’re doing something wrong, by not having that aesthetic, know that you are not the only one who doesn’t, or can’t study like that. Personally, if I don’t have a mess of books and paper surrounding me, I feel like I’m doing something wrong by not integrating myself enough in whatever I’m writing/studying. That’s not to say that aesthetic is a bad thing, I certainly enjoy seeing those warm images, but realize they aren’t realistic for a lot of people.

I see many posts by "Academic" or "Studyblr" blogs that are aesthetic.

You know the kind: beautifully chosen spots to study, glamorous journals/notes, the obligatory coffee/tea photos, and so forth. It's definitely not real life, at least not for me. When I'm in research or writing mode, my workspace is far from clean, perfectly organized, or pretty.

I thought it'd be cool to start a thread where people add their own authentic, study spaces. I want to see the mess, the gritty, disaster spaces where real work is happening. I'll start us off:

#gradblogging #grad school #gradblr #mastrblr #masters degree #studyblr #studying

[sustgradgirl]

Not my own personal tips, but definitely applicable. Grad school is a wonderful experience. It can be deeply rewarding as you pursue knowledge, but it can be extremely stressful. Everyone has their own way of dealing with the stresses that come with studying, and it’s best to explore how you personally do as early as possible. And if you’re unable to cope, seek help.

Things You’ve Heard About Grad School (Esp. A PhD) But Need Repeating

It is, by nature, lonely. Most of your cohort are usually married or have pets or some sort of life outside school, which means that, unlike your undergrad, you might find it difficult to find people to hang out with after school hours. If you’re in a PhD program, this is even worse because everyone does their own thing, most of the time, and apparently year 3 and on is a little more lonely than before (because a lot of us don’t do classes after year 2). Summers, if you choose to stay on campus or your advisor asks you to, are a little lonelier than the academic school cycle as well.

Everyone has their own flow of creative academia, and you cannot be expected to reproduce what worked for other people. As my wonderful coordinator told me, looking me straight in the eyes, as he ignored the other students- Don’t try to reverse engineer the process, that’s not how it works

Time Management, What’s that? The first thing you will notice once you get into classes and research papers is that you no longer know how to manage your time. Years of conditioning has made you work extra hard for your classes and now all your professors are telling you that your classes don’t matter and that you should focus all you time on your research. BUT HOW. Well, that’s a question apparently no one quite knows how to handle. The apps help you keep track of things, but prioritization is an art that can apparently only be learnt through anxiety inducing breakdowns.

If you already knew everything, you wouldn’t be here- This is really easy to forget and I have to constantly catch myself and remind myself that it is expected that I find things hard in my first year. You will find things hard regardless of which year you are in AND THAT IS OKAY. 

#gradblogging #grad school #grad student #graduate school #gradblr #studying #student #school #masters degree

[sustgradgirl]

Some background on me

So before I delve more into tips, sustainability, etc, I figure it might be good to go over a few things about me, and how I got to where I currently am. I will eventually post about my aspirations, and where I hope they lead me. 

As I had mentioned in my, “What is a Sustainable Community?” post, I am interested in natural disasters and the effects on places/people. 

To start, I live in an area that is very prone to flooding, and that has seen a few major flood events in the last 2 decades.

I originally did not plan on going into an environment based field, rather, I thought for a long time I was going to go into social work, which in itself is a fine career path, but a very difficult one based on what you intend on doing. I had a bit of taste of social work during my first, major full time job, as a Youth Advocate in a school system. I was basically a social worker without the degree, and it left a bad taste in my mouth. I was not happy where I was at, and was being emotionally abused by one of my co-workers.

My Undergrad is in Sociology, which I very much so have a passion for, but also always had an interest in Environmental Studies. The only reason I did not go into Environmental Studies is because math is a pretty decent part of the program at Binghamton University, and there is a whole lot of history I won’t go into about why math and me do not mix. But I knew that because of where I lived in my childhood, I was very interested in learning more about natural disaster and the effects on society and what can be done to help people survive the inevitable catastrophe that is climate change. 

I battled with myself for almost 2 years deciding whether I wanted to get my Masters, and the field that I would be getting it in. Social work was no longer on the books for me, so I decided to look for something else that fits within Sociology and Environmental Studies. Thus, came Sustainable Communities at Binghamton University. The program was sold to me based on my interests, as a structured program but as well as one that is flexible. 

I will admit, having a 2 year gap between Undergrad and Grad school did pose some enormous challenges for me as I started and completed my first semester, which I will go into at other time. I feel significantly more confidant in my ability to get a Masters degree, especially since I will have more availability to take courses in things that truly interest me, rather than the required courses that without a doubt kicked my ass in my first semester, but that taught me a lot of lessons. 

For those that are potentially interested in the Sustainable Communities program at Binghamton University, you can check out more about the program here: https://www.binghamton.edu/sustainable-communities/index.html

#gradblr #graduate school #gradblogging #masters #masters degree #grad student #binghamton university #suny binghamton

[sustgradgirl]

What is a Sustainable Community?

A lot of people get excited whenever I tell them that I am a Grad student. After telling them, I usually get a follow up question that is all too familiar to college/uni students, “what are you studying?”.  “Why sustainable communities good sir/ma’am”

Which is typically follow up with, “😶???”

I honestly thought that meaning of my major is in the name itself, but have realized it’s not so obvious to a lot of people. 

A sustainable community is many things that make a community more environmentally, economically and socially efficient. It is literally built on the those 3 categories, that are recognized as essential pillars within sustainability. My program is dedicated to establishing a base of understanding of all 3 pillars, and applying them based on personal interests. It is all parts environmental science, sociology, math, anthropology, pubic affairs, geography, etc. It is an interdisciplinary course, designed to have real world impacts, that are long lasting, sustainable, and approachable for everyone within a community. 

Many students plan on going into urban planning, which I am partially studying because I want to understand why cities/towns/etc are built the way they are, how that effects areas that are prone to disaster, and what needs to be done to fit the 3 pillars I mentioned previously into a future framework. 

A quick note about what I am interested in studying. I just mentioned that one of the things about urban planning I’m interested in is how disaster effects places based on how they were built. But that’s not the bigger picture. Initially I am interested in how natural disaster effects places overall, in the form of environment, economics, society, and recovery. I will post more about this later, as I don’t want to over saturate this post. I will also post more on sustainability itself throughout my grad career. 

#gradblr #mastrblr #masters #grad school #sustainability #sustainable communities #grad student