Going back to school as an adult can be daunting, yet it is undeniably a life-altering investment in yourself. Not only is the pursuit of education fulfilling, but this investment in yourself can also help you hone your skills and grow both personally and as a leader. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, adults who endeavor to return to complete their degrees have the potential to earn more, on average, than their peers without degrees. In addition, recent studies have shown that earning a college degree can increase the likelihood of improved health, job satisfaction, the propensity to give back to our communities.

If you are grappling with the idea of returning to school with such a busy schedule, here are some value-added actions you can take to set yourself up for success.

• Choose a flexible program to meet the needs of your lifestyle.

The traditional classroom is no longer the predominant pathway to degree completion. Institutions have adapted to the needs of their students and higher education has and continues to evolve. Many different learning modalities exist including 100% online and hybrid programs. To achieve academic success, it’s important that you do the research and find the type of program that will best allow you to balance your demanding home and professional life.

•  Time Management Mastery

No matter what kind of program you choose to pursue, whether it be in the classroom or virtually, a key indicator of success is time management. In order to ensure the best outcome in your educational pursuits, creating and developing essential time management skills is imperative. Some of the common practices that we see the most successful students exhibit are:

• Deadline setting with milestones to check your progress 

  

• Identifying, removing, and preventing distractions/interruptions

• Manage and overcome procrastination

• Knowing your own personal prime time for studying

• Prioritize task in terms of their importance and deadlines, but also be flexible to re-organize as things change

• Avoid the inefficiency of multitasking

• Choose a program that provides you with practical skills.

One of the best approaches you can take is to select a program that also gives you skills that can enhance your professional life or take your career to the next level. Consider selecting a program that develops your technical understanding, nurtures your leadership potential, improves your networking and presentation skills, or expands your business acumen. You can learn real-world skills if you select the right program, that you can apply at work immediately.

• Strengthen your technical skills.

According to a report released by US News, in the United States, 6.3 million students have taken at least one online course and this figure continues to increase year after year. To keep up with today’s changing educational climate, student success hinges on their ability to leverage basic technology skills.

In our current modern world, higher education and technology have increasingly become intertwined and inseparable. Some of the virtual academic scenarios you can look forward to are collaboration projects with fellow students, taking part in virtual seminars, and submitting assignments via a computer. As such, it is recommended that students ensure they have the basic technology skills to navigate the unavoidable virtual aspects of the academic environment. Here are some of the crucial skills that adult students 

• Computer literacy in both Mac and Windows environments

• Word processing (Example: Microsoft Office suite)

• Working knowledge of web and cloud computing