Showing posts with label nontraditional student advice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nontraditional student advice. Show all posts

Some great advice from a Nontrad Yahoo Group member

Some great advice from a nontraditional student - 7 tips
This photo of St. Aidan's College is by John Phillips and has a CC license.














Amanda is a nontraditional student who is a member of the Yahoo Nontrads Group.

She wrote a new member who is going back to school, and gave some great advice to her today. It is advice that all nontraditional students can use.

Here are some of her tips:

#1.  Learn to say no sometimes. Just because you are a student, that doesn't mean you have lots of free time. Often, it means you don't!


#2. Guard your study time, because it is important.


#3. Learn to lower your housekeeping standards - it's necessary sometimes. She made a schedule for this too.


#4. Go on autopilot and don't feel guilty about it sometimes too.


#5. Try using different kinds of planners, whatever kind is easy for you to use.


#6. Keep organized... color-coding can help too.


#7. Keep easy-to-prepare food on hand to save time.

I love these tips.

Thanks, Amanda!


Betsyanne
Current and Former Nontraditional Student
Current: Ceramics, art, and online selling
Former: Education.

Some Nontrad links:

The Nontrad site and blog

Join Nontrads on Facebook

 Nontrads on Yahoo

 Nontrads on Twitter

Do you have a mentor? Here are tips on how to get one.

You may need a mentor to help you navigate your school and career.

Okay. We all know what a mentor is - - somebody we can approach when we have questions about life, about a job, or about our education.

A mentor is somebody who may have "been there and done that" and has a unique perspective on what is important to you. They are someone we can look up to - - generally an older person, but not necessarily.

A good mentor is like a lighthouse. He or she can help you navigate difficult paths, and zero in on where you want to go in your life, training, and/or career.

Nontraditional students can find a mentor in their chosen field of study, or naturally gravitate to somebody, like a teacher or a fellow student who has insight into what you are learning about.

Do you have a mentor? Do you feel a need to have somebody who can steer you in the right direction at school or with your life?

I know I did not seek out a mentor in school. But now I look back and wish I had. And after picking one out, I would have wanted to meet with this person a few times before I completed my studies. So that is one reason for this posting.

Some people consider their therapist a mentor. And this can be their relationship. Not always, but sometimes. I know that some people rely on good advice from their therapist.

Other people are lucky enough to find somebody else who fits the bill for a mentor's role.

How you go about finding a mentor is up to you. Perhaps joining a club or group at school will help you find your mentor. Or maybe your mentor is online right now. Perhaps a favorite teacher or professor will be willing to guide you and be there for you when you have questions.

I had two mentors when I was in school that I could have met with and asked if they would be my mentor. I feel that they probably would have said yes to my question. They happened to be teachers, and were always there for me to ask questions of, or get extra help for class. I felt comfortable around them, which I think is an important requirement for a mentor.

I know they would have been very willing to help me with a personal question or guide me in the right direction for my career.

Do you have a favorite mentor story? I'd love to share it with my readers.

Nontraditionally yours,
Betsyanne
Former Nontraditional Student at WKU

Find out more: here are some articles to help you find your own personal mentor.

How to Find a Career Mentor by Alison Doyle at About.com

Find a Mentor Online from Project Management Institute

How to Find a Mentor for your Job - from Forbes online (expect a short waiting time to see the web page)

A Self-Improvement Mentor - going back to school

Also - you can find mentors and other nontraditional students here at:
The Nontrad site and blog
Join Nontrads on Facebook
Nontrads on Yahoo  and
Nontrads on Twitter