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Working Full Time & Studying tips

daryab116daryab116 Alum Member
in General 54 karma
Hi guys,

I currently work full time 9-5 as a legal assistant, but wake up as early as 5:30-6 because my commute is pretty far (DC traffic is terrible!!!). I usually get home around 6:30-7 and I'm exhausted. For those who work full time, what are your study schedules like? How many hours do you devote to studying when you get home? I'm planning on taking the LSAT in September or December, so any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
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Comments

  • apublicdisplayapublicdisplay Alum Member
    edited March 2016 696 karma
    This is basically me; also work 40hrs, commute to DC, and plan to take in September. I'm usually exhausted when I get home from work so instead I've found waking up at 4am every other day to take a full PT or review/study has been a lot better for me. I then leave for work around 8:30am (which roughly gets me around 3 hours+ of study time) and just get home very late. Making use of the weekends is very important. I don't know what point you are in your studies but I've been at this for some time now. Even waking up on time and studying after work really takes its toll. If you're committed to working and studying at the same time then you better understand what you're getting yourself into and know that it won't be easy. See what works best for you and try to make your work schedule flexible around your studying. I'd focus on maximizing the quality or efficiency of your study time (by knowing and making use of the time you're most able to focus) instead of # of hours per day. In the end, I think it's way more important to focus on studying than work.
  • runiggyrunruniggyrun Alum Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐
    2481 karma
    Is there any way you can replace your car commute with public transportation? I do a lot of reading/videos/BR on the train, so I only need to find extra time for PT's (I do a couple of game sections during lunch break as well).
    I am in awe of @apublicdisplay who can wake up and study 4am. I tried to get up at 5 and study a couple of times and couldn't retain anything. Words were dancing on the page in front of my eyes. I did have more success getting up very early, getting into work very early and finishing early to do PT's at the end of the day, but my job has flexible hours - I'm not sure if you have that option as a paralegal.
    Other than that, make best use of weekends, especially if you don't have any other commitments for Sat/Sun and give yourself a longer timeframe to prepare.
    Good luck, a job with billable hours and studying is going to be very taxing.
  • MookittyyMookittyy Member
    167 karma
    If you are really determined to study for an hour or two even on weekdays, I say you should consider going somewhere nearby to your work like Starbucks or a library right after you finish working. Bring your earphones, a laptop/tablet and some materials to write with to work with you and study for as long as you can. I used to do this when I was exhausted after coming home from work. I would just die on the couch and not do anything for the rest of the evening. However, by going somewhere to study immediately after work, my brain was sort of still in "work mode" and I found it *much* easier to study then. I didn't feel as tired and lethargic. I think there was something about the physical act of coming home from work that just made my body and brain shut down. I can imagine that it must be much harder for your after being in traffic/travelling for a couple hours added on top of it being after work. Give this a go for a week or two, I think you might benefit from it.
  • Omed_OvOOmed_OvO Alum Member
    158 karma
    This is my life story. I take 495 to work in the morning/night about 30 miles one way (its a disaster). So, I changed up my study schedule. I wake up at 5:45 - I'm beating a majority of traffic by getting to work by 7am. I study for two hours until 9. And then at 5pm, I go work out near my job (to get my body and mind pumping) and then study until 7:30/8pm. By the time I get on the road, traffic is minimal. I crash upon arrival and repeat.
  • Cant Get RightCant Get Right Yearly + Live Member Sage ⭐ 🍌 7Sage Tutor
    27900 karma
    I've been there. Work is exhausting and then there's just nothing left in the tank. What I started doing is manipulating my sleep schedule so that I could study before work instead of after. Instead of working then studying then sleeping, I'd study then work then sleep. So what that looked like for me was I'd go to sleep immediately after work, about 5pm. Then I'd get up at 1am and study fresh after 8 hours of sleep. Then I'd go to work at 8am, come home and crash. Work was a little rough, but I could power through it much better than I could power through LSAT studying when exhausted. It took awhile (and some zquil) before I could fully adjust but once I did I was able to study effectively.
  • jimenezja.jjjimenezja.jj Alum Member
    187 karma
    I'm currently dealing with the same thing. I work from 6:00 am to 2:30 pm. I try to get to work 30 minutes before and do some work and as @Mookittyy mentioned I go straight to Starbucks or the library after work and do 3 -4 hours of studying. I find when I go home take a1 hr nap and try to study after I'm not as productive. I think you just need to find out what time you work best. For me after 7pm I feel I don't retain any information. Good luck !!!
  • AlejandroAlejandro Member Inactive ⭐
    2424 karma
    I study at the office after work for like 3-4 hours during the weekdays yo. I have the same problem. If I go home after work I get tired, lay in bed, and watch Netflix with my roommates. Staying at work late is my cure - keeps me focused.
  • Nanchito-1-1Nanchito-1-1 Alum Member
    edited March 2016 1762 karma
    I work 8-4 M-F with a 46 min commute. I joined my the alumni group at my old college, and they gave me access to their gym and network so I drive straight there after work 3 times a week. It's great because school is 5 mins from home. After I get there, I grab something quick for dinner, I find a quiet place, plug in my earphones, study for like 2-3 hours, then go for a run or lift something. I also print a few sections or games and take them with me to do on lunch break. On the weekends I have to physically remove myself from home because I can't study there. There are furballs full of love and it's just too comfy. I use to do pts in the morning and br calls on Saturday nights to get a feel for where I am, now i'm drilling and redrilling the game bundle. Sunday is my well deserved day off.
  • Fish0701Fish0701 Member
    133 karma
    Same situation here in Atlanta. Finding an empty office to crank out some BR or review some curriculum after work is "the move" for me. I get way too comfortable at home to be able to properly focus and stay on task. I never PT after work, only on the weekends. Also, and I think this is actually really important, if I had a particularly stressful/long day at work, I cut my losses and either study less or not at all that day, and just make sure to get a nice night of sleep.
  • quinnxzhangquinnxzhang Member
    edited March 2016 611 karma
    I was in the same situation working full time. What helped me was doing half a PT every day instead of a full PT every other day. Half a PT would only take around an hour (as opposed to 2-3 hours). I'd either take my lunch break or stay late in the office to PT, and then commute home to review.

    The downside is I didn't really train my stamina, but the plus side is that I was less exhausted and more motivated to stick to my schedule.
  • daryab116daryab116 Alum Member
    54 karma
    @runiggyrun unfortunately public transportation is not the option for me, and I need my car.

    Like most of you said, I think my best option is to head to Starbucks or the library and study there after work and study for a few hours there.Thanks again every one!
  • disasterpiecevdisasterpiecev Free Trial Member
    29 karma
    I also drive to/from dc. I concur with what others said about going straight to the library after work. I also listened to 7sage lessons, the thinkinglsat podcasts, and other lsat related videos from YouTube in the car,and studied LR questions when I could get a few minutes here and there at work, all of which I found to be helpful.
  • AddistotleAddistotle Member
    328 karma
    I feel your pain, I'm up by 4:30 am, at work for 6:45, home by 5.

    Keep chipping away at that green circle, don't be afraid to push a test back if you're not scoring where you want to on PTs!

    I agree with disasterpiecev's advice, find some kind of audio and use that to maximize studying on your commute
  • halleighhh4halleighhh4 Member
    edited March 2016 35 karma
    Ugh. I feel your pain too.

    I work a 9-5 job Monday-Friday as a legal assistant and then bartend twice a week. So some nights I'm working an 18 hour day or on the weekends I'll work 5pm to 3am so my sleep schedule gets messed up.

    I'm writing in September and I'm going to make an effort to study two nights out of the week for 3-4 hours and then commit to at least 6 hours a day on the weekend. Good bye social life! But worth it right?
  • AlejandroAlejandro Member Inactive ⭐
    2424 karma
    @halleighhh4 totally worth it!
  • Micaela_OVOMicaela_OVO Alum Member
    1018 karma
    I could not agree more with the advice to avoid going home after work. If I go home right after work, I always crash and end up taking a 3 hour "oops" nap.

    I work out at 5:30am to relieve stress/wake up my brain. I get to work 30 mins early to do a few logic games or RC passages. A lot of the work I do at the office is repetitive (paralegal), so I’m able to listen to Economist podcasts or SCOTUS oral arguments while I work sometimes. During lunch, I do some more games/RC passages or blind review a passage of a PT. I head to Barnes & Noble or Starbucks after work to avoid napping and knock out around 4 hours every day.

    Social life sucks, but I told my friends I’m in a long term relationship with the LSAT. I’ve been at this since August. Gotta get your priorities straight!



  • Saldamando150Saldamando150 Member
    89 karma
    So I work 50+ hours a week as a construction manager in small town New Mexico and study about 2-3 hours a day since I work 10-11 hours a day. Weekends are crucial and try to do a lot then. My schedule is pretty much work-lift-eat-study-repeat. I'm looking at taking the December LSAT and having my law school applications sent before the year ends.
  • runiggyrunruniggyrun Alum Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐
    2481 karma
    @Saldamando150 said:
    So I work 50+ hours a week as a construction manager in small town New Mexico and study about 2-3 hours a day since I work 10-11 hours a day. Weekends are crucial and try to do a lot then. My schedule is pretty much work-lift-eat-study-repeat. I'm looking at taking the December LSAT and having my law school applications sent before the year ends.
    Hats off to you, Sir - your brain must be using some super long lasting batteries! If my work involved 11 hour days I'd probably be able to sit for the LSAT circa 2019. Even without the lifting (I've not seen the inside of a gym since September when I started studying).
  • stepharizonastepharizona Alum Member
    3197 karma
    @runiggyrun said:
    Weekends are crucial and try to do a lot then. My schedule is pretty much work-lift-eat-study-repeat. I'm looking at taking the December LSAT and having my law school applications sent before the year ends.
    You've got a great plan!
  • stepharizonastepharizona Alum Member
    3197 karma
    I also have a tip for those that have to commute and maybe have LSAT books, or typed notes they like to review. This works with a iPhone and iPad. Take any notes and covert them to a PDF. Save the PDF to your iBooks.

    If you have the kindle version of a book, download the kindle app.

    Ok, have the material you want to read but don't have time, but you could listen to it?

    Great! Go to Settings -->General --> Accessibility--> Turn on Voice Over On

    Open the PDF in iBooks, or open the kindle app swipe 2 fingers (or three depending on device set up) and Siri will start reading your PDF or book to you... listen away!

    I did this with a few PDFs of notes when I had a 35 min drive each way to work and also listened to a RC book that way (yes I do see the irony in that statement).

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