Real life: How I balance studying full-time with two kids under five!

By Jessica Evans

I had always dreamed of going to university, but when I moved to Australia from Aotearoa (New Zealand) when I was 17, that dream seemed unlikely to come true any time soon. I’d dropped out of high school without completing my final year, and I also needed to live in Australia for 10+ years before I could access a HECs/HELP loan.

Life went on and I got married and had two kids. However, I still carried a passion for learning, and I also wanted to find a career path that would allow me to help others and improve lives.

Nearly 10 years after moving to Australia, I enrolled in a foundation studies program through Flinders University. I was incredibly lucky to have a tutor in foundation studies whose passion for education and learning was palpable. With a decent mark on completion of the course, I decided to apply for a degree with a higher ATAR – and was accepted into a BA of Psychological Science (Honours)!

Now that I have officially completed my first semester, it has been an incredibly fulfilling experience, albeit challenging at times. My children are five (kindy) and one (at home with me) which means my days are committed to being Mum, followed by a lot of late nights doing my assignments, and a newly acquired coffee habit.

I am enjoying studying so much, and the privilege of attending uni is not lost on me. I am excited to see what the next few years and beyond have in store. I hope to go on to post graduate study too. My mum was a young single mother who worked hard to get through uni looking after three kids on her own. Watching her achieve this, as well as her confidence in me, has been incredibly motivating.

5 tips for studying as a parent

For any other parents out there considering taking up further education whilst raising a family, here are my top 5 tips for balancing studying and parenting:

1. Embrace multitasking: As a busy parent, you may not always have the time to focus on one task at a time, and that’s okay. You could find ways to combine tasks, or multi-task, for example listening to audio recordings of lectures while you run errands. That way you can save your pockets of uninterrupted concentration for activities requiring the highest level of focus: writing assignments and preparing for exams.
2. Feedback, feedback, feedback!: One of the best ways to set yourself up for success at uni is to seek feedback on your assignments before you submit them, at least several days beforehand so you have time to make any edits before the final deadline. You can ask for feedback from your professors, from family and friends, or by using your university’s ethical online study support service, Studiosity.
3. Your schedule is your best friend: You may not have been a hyper-organised person before having kids, but these days you might find you’re loving your schedule! With study, making a plan and sticking to it ensures you feel like you have full control over your time, and you’re able to fit in all the tasks you need to get done.
4. Consistency is key: They say consistency is the key to success, and it’s true! You’ll be better off chipping away at your workload day after day, rather than setting aside a huge chunk of time right before an assignment is due. Especially with kids, you never know what could pop up at the last minute, so it’s best to always be prepared and start working on things early.
5. Choose a uni that offers flexibility: One good thing to come out of the pandemic is that studying online and working from home are now far more common. However, some education providers are better at catering to the specific needs of parents trying to balance studying with raising a family. Select a provider that offers online course delivery or hybrid/flexible arrangements for parents, including adequate study support that is personalised and available when you need it. It’s also a good idea to find or create a support network of other parents who have had similar experiences to you and can share valuable insights and advice.

Pursuing your degree while raising kids can be challenging at times, but if you’re passionate about what you’re studying it’s ultimately a very rewarding experience!

With a few helpful tips, flexibility, and support, you’ll make your way through and probably even have fun along the way.

As a role model for you kids, you’re teaching them to take on worthwhile challenges and work on a dream until you make it happen – and what could be more awesome than that?