Written By Canton Winer
As a graduate student, it is easy to feel like you’re constantly treading water. There is always a new deadline, always a project to work on, always a potential grant proposal to write. The various demands of graduate school keep us busy, often making personal health and work-life balance feel like unrealistic luxuries.
All of this is exacerbated by the fact that graduate school—and academia in general—does not work like a traditional job. We don’t work on a 9-5 schedule, and we don’t leave our work in the office. Often, our home is our office.
The constant cycle of stress that so many graduate students find themselves in often becomes self-perpetuating because we allow our professional and academic lives to completely overrun our personal lives and our mental, physical, and emotional health.
With all of this in mind, it’s important to remember that our personal lives are fundamentally inseparable from our academic and professional lives. While our academic and professional lives can certainly lead to our personal lives suffering, the reverse is also true. Work-life balance doesn’t simply improve your personal life; it improves your academic and professional life as well.
Try to avoid the temptation to sacrifice your mental, emotional, and physical health to your professional life. It may seem like a short-term bargain—graduate school is temporary, after all—but neglecting your health will lead not only to adverse personal effects, but also to diminished academic outcomes.
Poor mental, emotional, and physical health will bleed into your academic life. We simply can’t be as productive when we’re dealing with health problems, whether that’s due to a weakened immune system or the lack of an emotional support network.
Here are some things to keep in mind to improve both your personal life and your work life while in graduate school:
Don’t Neglect Your Friendships
Friendships can be invaluable in creating your support network. In fact, research has shown that social support is correlated with decreased levels of stress and better health. Whether you need to vent about a problem in one of your courses or you simply need to distract yourself and have some fun, strong friendships will be important in refreshing you and giving you the energy to succeed in graduate school.
Remember to Exercise
Exercise takes time. With so many demands on our time, it’s easy for exercise to fall off of the to-do list. But various studies suggest that exercise replenishes our energy levels to increase the amount of productive time we have during the day. It can also raise endorphins and release stress. View exercise as an investment in your productivity and in your mental health.
Eat Healthily
There’s no denying that graduate students have limited resources to spend on healthy food, and cooking takes up valuable time. But a healthy diet will lead to a healthier body and mind. Illness is a huge burden on productivity, and a healthy diet will boost your immune system.
Take Time Off
Don’t feel guilty for taking time off from your academic work. Academia can be exhausting, and we all need to take breaks. Give yourself time off every week when you don’t need to work—and when you don’t need to feel guilty for not working.
Leave Campus
There are so many great resources to take advantage of on campus. But sometimes it’s useful to leave UCI—and even Irvine altogether—to remind yourself that there’s more to life than academia. We have delicious food, beautiful beaches, amazing hiking trails, world-class museums, and more all at our disposal in Southern California. Don’t forget to take advantage—and to take your friends along with you.