In Class: How to Juggle Your Time
Zainab Mudallal is a senior in the Philip Merrill College of Journalism. She will be writing columns throughout the school year from a student’s perspective.
If you’re a journalism major, and if you’re planning on getting a job in your field, you’re most likely not just walking to and from Knight Hall. You’re probably freelancing for your local Patch website, or copyediting for The Diamondback. You may even have an internship in Washington, D.C., or have started your own Washington Nationals blog. You’re doing whatever you can to get noticed, and that’s exactly how it should be.
But it’s easy to get overwhelmed when you’re expected to stay on top of your classes and show up awake and alert to your assistantship or part-time job. But there are ways to keep your cool and manage your time.
1. Do what you love.
Sung-Min Kim, a senior broadcast journalism major, is a WTOP sports intern, Diamondback photographer, a member of the Jiménez-Porter Writers’ House, a member of Terpmode – the arts hub and community at the University of Maryland – and a co-music director and sports show host at WMUC Radio. But he said he doesn’t feel overworked because he enjoys everything he’s doing.
“The things I do are mostly relevant to my interests so I’m motivated for them,” he said.
2. Manage your time.
If you don’t have class till 2:00 p.m., waking up at 11:00 am and finishing up a paper or article will only ease your stress once you get out of class at 9:45 p.m. If you have a three hour break between your classes and a package due tomorrow, stop by the news bubble and edit it there instead of trying to focus in your apartment while everyone else is watching Monday Night Football. Find a balance between your leisure and work time, because all your activities will look great on your resume, but your clips aren’t going to be your best when you don’t focus or give yourself enough time.
Joshua Axelrod, a senior journalism major, juggles working at the Capital News Service D.C. bureau, contributing to Bleacher Report weekly and working at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. But he still finds time to watch his favorite television shows and relax.
“I devote as much time to work as I need to, and then can immediately flip the switch into leisure mode,” he said. “It helps keep me sane when work piles up or in those rare moments when I find myself bored.”
3. Make time for yourself.
There will be occasions where you will unreasonably stressed, and it’s crucially important to give yourself time to clear your mind every day. Whether it’s setting aside an hour for an evening run around campus, reading a chapter of that book you’ve had no time to finish or treating yourself to frozen yogurt at Yogiberry with your friends, it’ll keep you from reaching that ultimate tipping point. Stress will usually make you feel bad, so do something that makes you feel good, even if it’s only for 30 minutes a day.
4. Don’t be afraid to say “no.”
The Philip Merrill College of Journalism has a lot of panels, events, networking opportunities and career fairs that you shouldn’t miss out on. It will take up much your time in addition to your class and work hours, so you may have to say “no,” to that coffee date or even that extra-credit assignment if you have an interview scheduled or you just need to take a nap. You’re only human, after all.
Kim said saying “no,” on occasion is not a big deal if your priorities are set straight.
“You gotta do what you gotta do,” he said. “The odds are that you can find time for socializing sometime later.”
Anyone in this major should know it’s not easy, but should realize the ability to juggle multiple tasks is a skill all journalists are expected to have.
