The calm before the storm

xkcd comic from xkcd.com

Being in my last few days of summer vacation for this summer, I've started thinking about all the things I have to do, and want to do, in my professional and school life. August is drawing nearer, and I have to buy some plane tickets to Edmonton, and also book a hotel room for my stay during the orientation week for my EdD program. I am excited, yet a bit "freaked out"; not the right word, hence it being in quotes, but it is in the ballpark. The unknown is something that makes me uneasy, but at the same time I know that I'll learn a lot, meet new and interesting people, and have fun while at it.

The one thing that dawned on me was this thought: can I still MOOC while I am taking part in a degree program? I started MOOCing back in 2011 partly because I was done with formal school (where I could get a degree for doing a course of study) and I wanted to continue learning. Going back to school means at I will most likely have to cut out some activities in order to properly manage my time. Luckily my train commute to work (2.5 to 3 hours per weekday) does provide me with ample time to read and brainstorm on activities. I've prepared quite a few conference posters, conference presentations, and proofread a lot of papers while on the train.

The wildcard is the MOOC. I've been looking at my coursera, EdX, eliademy and futurelearn lists of courses I am interested in and over the next academic year (September to May) I've got at least 15 courses. I am thinking to myself and wondering if I can keep on MOOCing while doing school work. I guess my plan of attack will be to continue on MOOCing (it is a planned dissertation topic anyway) and then axe MOOCs that would be low on my "completion list" if I need more time.

I am wondering how other doctoral students are balancing their school commitments with their side learning project commitments. If you are (or were) a doctoral student, share your thoughts :-). I know that when I ws pursuing my last 2 masters degrees (concurrently) I basically blocked everything else out pretty much, except for some Sloan-C workshops.

 

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