Tricks-or-Treats of the Trade

By: Brenda Straka

Read time: 2 minutes

With Halloween around the corner, we asked the SPSP community for some of their best advice – tricks and treats – for graduate school. Check out some of their tips about navigating work-life balance, building support systems, and working efficiently.

• Do not be afraid to lean on other people. The one thing I have learned so far in graduate school is that everyone is stressed and overwhelmed sometimes. The people you take classes with, or work with, are in the same position as you. They understand what you are going through. Do not be afraid to lean on your community or to reach out when you are stressed. You will be surprised at the amount of support and encouragement you will receive when you open up and allow it in.
• Advice for all first-year graduate students: Effort is not always rewarded. This is a good thing. It leads to industrious learning, the flexibility to adapt to changing contingencies, and the ability discriminate between great work and “hard” work.
• Don’t let research become your whole life. Grad students tend to focus on their research as if it’s the only thing, but it’s not. Keep up with your hobbies, go out on weekends, and hang out with your family (if you like them). It will keep you sane.