How to Pursue Your EdD While Working Full Time
Patricia Cottonham is the Vice President for Student Affairs at the Ӱר Ӱר and she is earning an EdD in Educational Leadership in her spare time. It should come as no surprise that sheӰרs pursuing the Higher Education leadership concentration.
To say her job is demanding is an understatement and any spare time she has is in short supply. Her day can start in the early hours of the morning and end well after midnight. When she enrolled in the educational leadership doctoral program, she initially struggled to balance her erratic schedule with the challenges of a doctoral program.
ӰרI have to admit that I learned to handle it a little bit better as the time went on. In the beginning, it was very difficult for me,Ӱר she admits. ӰרItӰרs not an easy program Ӱר you need to make time for it in your life. Trying to carve out the time was difficult, but I wanted to do it because I really enjoyed the program.Ӱר
Pat (known as Vice President Cottonham around these parts) says it was a lot of small things that made pursuing her doctoral feel daunting.
ӰרI was older, a little more advanced in my career, nervous about going back to school, nervous about whether I could fit it into my life, whether I could really do this 100 percent academic thing,Ӱר she says. ӰרI hadnӰרt even written in APA style, even though IӰרve honestly written so many letters as a professional over the years. It was all those little things Ӱר that werenӰרt little to me Ӱר that I was going to have to learn how to do.Ӱר
But, she says, ӰרI donӰרt regret it at all. I would do it again.Ӱר
When youӰרre pursuing your doctorate in education and working full time, your work and school lives donӰרt exist in silos. Almost immediately, you can apply what youӰרve learned in the classroom to your workplace and vice versa. The facultyӰרs support and expertise, she said, helped ensure her success.
ӰרBeing a student again helped me personally, but I think it also helped me to understand the students we serve even better,Ӱר she says. ӰרStudents donӰרt always make good choices, and sometimes we canӰרt do what students may ask us for, but when I had to understand what itӰרs like staying up through the night trying to write a paper or turn in a project, going to office hours, and everything else, it re-emphasized for me that being a student is not easy.
ӰרLife can sometimes be difficult and throw some things your way. Whether youӰרre a parent who is trying to juggle a family and children and coming back, whether youӰרre a student who is coming back but has to work two or three jobs, or whether youӰרre a student who has made a mistake Ӱר I think with all of those situations, having been a student these last three years has helped me understand their experience better.Ӱר
The interplay of research and practice was also very helpful for Pat. She said it reminded her that the ӰרӰרs best practices are embedded in research and validated the work she does on a daily basis.
ӰרIt was refreshing to see the things that we do come alive. Sometimes you just forget because theyӰרre routine: you come to work, you see students, you fix problems, you go to activities, you calm and soothe and comfort and encourage. After you do that for awhile, you donӰרt think about it as much,Ӱר she says. ӰרBeing part of this program has helped to make me see that it is very important, what we do, and that feels so good.Ӱר
Now that sheӰרs near the end of her program, Pat admits that she has some regrets.
ӰרSome of the things IӰרve learned I wish I would have known three or four years ago,Ӱר she says. ӰרThat is one of the benefits of doing the program earlier in your career. It gives you an appreciation for how all higher education works together.Ӱר
For those who are still concerned about keeping up with the demands of the program, Pat says, ӰרIf everybody comes into it knowing theyӰרre doing their personal best, theyӰרll definitely get the motivation and encouragement from the faculty and staff within the department and the college. ItӰרs attainable.Ӱר
