What Grad School Taught Me.

Since I have finished my classes, I have had a chance to think about what I learned in grad school.  Sure, I learned things like Net Present Value and Porter's Five Forces, but who wants to right or a read blog post about those things?  When I look back at my undergrad at Samford, I realized I learned SO much more than what I learned in the classroom, and I think the same can be said for grad school.

So here are the top ten (serious and not so serious) things (in no specific order) I learned during 2 1/2 years of grad school:  

I have enough clothes to go a month without doing laundry.

source

Laundry has never been my thing.  I just. don't. like. it.  So when I would have class several nights a week and homework to do and work, there just wasn't always time to do everything.  One of the things I gladly let slide was laundry.  Ideally I would do laundry once a week and at times it would end up being every other week.  But, this last semester when I was taking 4 classes I went an entire month (or likely more) without doing my laundry.  JP always says I have too many clothes but this time it came in handy!  I'm still having trouble getting back into the laundry routine because it is definitely my least favorite household chore.


Just because you are in grad school doesn't necessarily mean anything.

You'd think people in grad school would know not to do certain things.  For example, by the time you made it through high school and undergrad, you would know not to say DURING a presentation, "um... um... I'm nervous." You'd also think you would know not to write in a paper, "I will be discussing...."  Now for the most part, people acted like you think a grad student would act, but at least once a semester I found myself thinking... really?

Chick-fil-a dominates.

I have always loved Chick-fil-a, however, it was reconfirmed to me the excellence of this restaurant during grad school. When JP's meals were provided for him at work during busy season and I had class almost every night, it was much easier for me to just go to Chick-fil-a, especially since there is one between my apartment and school.  Plus, since their coupons never expire, I had quite a few accumulated.  When I wasn't using a coupon, I typically got {2 piece chicken strip kids meal with a Dr. Pepper refilled once and trade my toy in for ice cream}. I have the price memorized $4.20 since according to financial statements I went there over 10 times during March and April.




Getting off at work at 4:30 = tons of evening time.
When I first started working a real job, I was so exhausted at the end of a day and felt like I had no time once I got home.  Since doing grad school and frequently not getting home until 7:30 or even 10pm, I have realized that getting home at 4:30 results in an incredible amount of time.  I'm still getting used to that!  Usually around 7:30 I look at the clock and think, "wow! I still have so much time before bedtime"

The male gender is not an endangered species.

Samford is notorious for the low number of males compared to females.  Combined with the fact I was a nutrition major, I really was not around guys a lot during undergrad.  Additionally, since graduating being a dietitian has resulted in all female co-workers.  When I started the MBA program, I quickly realized that things had been flip-flopped.  Most of my classes were approximately 75% male.  I was in many groups where I was the only female.  I actually really enjoyed getting to know these guys.  It is quite different listening to guys talk about their wives, families, and futures than it is girls!


Eating at a restaurant alone is no big deal... and can be fun.
Earlier in my life, there is no way I would have ever eaten at a restaurant by myself.  I mean there once was a time I would not even sit on a bench at Samford by myself.  I definitely have gotten over that!  As I mentioned, I frequently went to Chick-fil-a.  Well you better believe I would eat in the restaurant by myself.  I've noticed that at dinner not many people eat by themselves but at lunch there is a much larger percentage to do so.

Stress is overrated.
There are several people in my life who get incredibly stressed when they even have just a little amount of tasks to complete.  Working full time and going to school resulted in a lot of things to do but not a lot of time.  It was much more demanding than undergrad.  I've realized that getting stressed is of no use to me.  I know I will get it done.  I think grad school really stretched me and helped realize how many things I can accomplish.

I have a very supportive husband.

 One of the reasons I think I was able to handle all I had to do without getting stressed was the fact that JP was very supportive.  He would take care of dinner when I had class late and would frequently do laundry.  I my one breakdown of the program was when my computer started acting up and wouldn't let me finish my project that was do the next day.  He dropped what he was doing to take me to the Samford computer lab.  He always had an encouraging word, and even when he was busy with CPA exam, school, or work he continued to be supportive.


Full time work + Full time student = very limited social life.
Throughout the MBA program I found it was a little more difficult to be social.  Then, when I started taking four classes it became absolutely impossible.  Luckily I made a lot of friends in the business school and enjoyed the time I spent with them and am actually sad that I do not get to see them.  However, now that I have more time, I am very thankful for the time I have to spend with friends.


I really do enjoy school.
On the way to my last class I texted JP, "I'm probably the only person in the history of the world that teared up on their way to their last class." I really do enjoy learning and like the school environment. Although it does interfere with social life and free time, I know that taking just one class at a time would have hardly interfered.  I'm hanging my hat up for now, but am making no commitments to not returning.  However, I really have not had any time without school, so who knows I might like it!  But then again, I can totally see myself as the "old" person in the class.