Rhythm is Key to Finding Success, Says UA Grantham Grad
UA Grantham online degree programs allow students to learn where and where it fits their busy life. But what does that mean, really? After all, aren’t there assignments, projects, and tests? To get a better sense of what it means to find success and earn a degree online at UA Grantham we connected with John Koehler, who recently earned his MBA – with a 4.0 GPA, no less.
Balancing Work, Family, and Education
Like many UA Grantham students, John is a busy mid-career professional balancing work obligations, family commitments, and community involvement with his kids’ boy scouts troop. “I was ready to go back to school for my masters” John said, but “there was no way I could take a two-year timeout for a traditional, on-campus MBA program”.
John had an advantage: as an employee of University of Arkansas Grantham he knew first-hand the university’s commitment to student success. “The best part of working at UA Grantham is the sense of mission we have. We know exactly who we’re helping, and that our work makes it possible for students to come back to school and earn their degree”.
Working at UA Grantham, however, didn’t mean John had the inside track. To the contrary: “I knew that if I give it less than my best, that just wouldn’t look good”. This was positive pressure, says John. “I was focused from the beginning on figuring out how to make it work.”
Weekly Routines for Success
John’s recipe for finding success at UA Grantham boiled down to keeping with the weekly rhythm of class activities. John explains: “The best thing about UA Grantham is that the weekly cycle of activities is something you get used to, then you repeat it every week. It kinda becomes second nature”.
UA Grantham terms start on the second Wednesday of the month, and continue for eight weeks. Says John: “The week before classes start is when you can access course material. During this week I’d make a plan for the term by reading the syllabus to identify which weeks are going to be busier than others, because of a midterm, a final, an assignment, or a paper due. Then I made sure to fit it to our home activities, like kids games, etc.”
Effective Time Management
“Each Wednesday I’d read the weekly assignment, and directions from the professor. Sometimes they’ll have a written lecture to read or a video lecture to watch. I’d usually watch or read the lectures first before doing anything else. Next, there are assigned textbook chapters to read. I tried to get ahead of the reading by doing that Wednesday through Friday. For me the best way to get this done was during the commute, using a text to audio reader.”
“The first weekly task is usually starting a discussion post by Sunday midnight. Then there’s either an essay or a quiz (or sometimes both) due Tuesday at midnight. Paper essay assignments always have clear instructions. It’s helpful to review that early in the week, so that you know what the paper is graded on. If you’re in a math-related class such as financial management, assignments typically have questions to work on instead of essays.”
Flexibility is Key
“I utilized the weekends to work on essays, and timed it around my kids' games. If games were in the afternoon, I’d carve out time in the mornings. I tried to get most papers and assignments done by Monday night so that if I needed a tutor or got stuck, I’d still have a day to utilize resources or ask the professor. On Tuesdays, before submitting assignments, I’d review one last time to make sure everything was addressed in the paper. I was surprised how many times I made edits on Tuesdays.”
“We were required to reply to at least two student discussion posts by Tuesday at midnight. I found the best time for me to work on the discussions is during my lunch breaks on Monday and Tuesday. Then I’ll quickly check before I go to bed on Tuesday night to see if there is anyone who asked questions of me in my discussion posts, that I could respond to.”
There were other life hacks, says John: “I used to take advantage of my kids' practices to catch up on readings. I’d read while I waited, instead of just dropping them off and coming back to get them. This helped me have dedicated time without interruptions.” Scheduling was also key to finding success: “I had everything on my Google calendar, so I knew when to tackle the assignments for the week with scheduled reminders.”
Tools and Resources for Students
Another advantage was the Lenovo laptop provided by UA Grantham to every student enrolling in a degree program, at no additional cost: “It was great to have my own laptop. I always had it with me, I carried it everywhere, even when we went camping. Whenever I had a free moment I’d use it for catching up on my readings.”
“At the beginning I wasn’t sure I’d be able to juggle it all,” John said, “but after a few weeks it clicked – it started making sense. Then, I just kept going. Yes, there were weeks when I got less than eight hours of sleep a night but at the end of the day it was totally doable and definitely worth it.”