For many people, undertaking a remote education course provides a great opportunity to work while also learning new skills related to their chosen discipline. However, even online courses require a certain level of commitment, so maintaining a healthy balance between your work and education is essential.

Getting it right takes navigation, so to help make the transition as stress-free as possible, here’s how you can structure your time for a healthy work-study balance.

Know your hours
No matter how many hours you’re contracted to work – or how many hours you’re committing to your studies – it’s important to have a good idea of what a balanced schedule looks like for you. After all, you don’t want to over-work yourself in either area.

Think about how many hours you’d need to spend studying to get the most out of your course, including time spent in virtual classes. Having a plan in place will help you to know if you should cut down your working hours or perhaps opt to complete your course over a longer period of time. 

Prioritise self-care
It’s essential that you don’t pack your schedule full of work and study only – having plenty of time to unwind between tasks and at the end of each day is important. While you might feel like you’re successfully balancing your work and education so long as you’re getting all your tasks done, working downtime into your routine is important in order to avoid burnout. This can be especially hard to stick to if you’re working remotely and studying from home, but it’s important to make sure you switch off once the working day is over.

Prioritising self-care can look like sticking to a regular, manageable routine, setting boundaries with colleagues, peers and people in your home, and taking breaks when you need them. Eating healthily and exercising will also help you to feel your best, and in turn, will help you to be more productive at work and while studying. 

Remember your goal
Perhaps you’re already working a job that directly relates to your chosen career path and your studies are simply a means to hone your skills. Alternatively, you could be taking a course to qualify in a field that is totally different to the area in which you’re working currently. No matter your circumstances, you need to have a clear vision for your future if you want to get that balance between work and study right.

When you have an end goal in mind, it becomes easier to stick to your schedule. Lack of direction can make you feel less motivated, which can easily lead to that perfect balance becoming skewed. No matter where you want to focus the majority of your efforts – or even if you want to focus on your work and education equally – understanding what you need to do to succeed will help you to stay on track.

Signs you’re maintaining a balance
A good balance between work and education will help you to feel confident that you can reach your goals in both areas. With the right schedule, you should find that sticking to each of your commitments comes easily. 

While it’s normal to feel stressed about work or study every now and then, you should never feel so overwhelmed to the point that your productivity starts to suffer – if it does, or if you feel burned out, it may be a sign that you need to work on restoring that healthy balance. It’s best to prioritise your health and happiness, and if possible, let your work and study commitments fill the gaps in your self-care schedule.