7 Keys To Going Back To Studying As An Adult

Are you considering going back to studying as an adult? In the past, this might seem like a strange, almost absurd choice. That was the feeling that many people had about these initiatives. However, training can be resumed for many reasons, out of necessity, curiosity, pleasure, wanting to learn … Because yes, in a more or less formal way, we never stop learning.

Don’t think that going back to school as an adult is the subject of failure or a bad choice. Your 17-year-old “me” had to choose what he wanted to dedicate the rest of his life to, at 17, 37 or 57 years old. Was your adolescent “me” really wise enough to know what your adult “me” would want twenty or thirty years later?

For this reason, more and more people are resuming their studies or are beginning to be interested in other subjects. Some do it to seek new professional horizons, others for a simple hobby. Whatever motivates you, there are a number of keys that are interesting to know before starting this process.

How to go back to studying as an adult

Do you want to go back to studying as an adult? If this is your case, remember that today you have many more options than the generations that preceded you. Today, for example, you have:

• Much more information about the training offer and more life experience to choose what you really want to study.
• A greater number of study possibilities.
• Online training is now an absolute reality and can greatly facilitate this process.

One of the authors who has worked the most on returning to school is Isabel C. Franco, writer of Going back to studying in adulthood: techniques and advice . In this book, the reader finds techniques and tips that can help him in various training areas:

• Persistence and learning in the face of failure or error.
• Techniques to take good notes in class, either in person or online.
• Assimilation of guidelines to be constant, especially when we talk about distance training.
• Memory and active reading techniques during study.

When we have spent many years without studying, it is not always easy to return to that familiar ground. We have lost the routine, even the people who supervised us; on the other hand, the brain at a certain age does not have the same capacity for retention and learning that it had during childhood and adolescence.

Keys for studying in adulthood

Continuous training is basic for any professional. It does not have to be college or university education, nor is it regulated. Any training course is helpful in improving performance. We also talk about updating for most jobs: a professional retraining.

Be that as it may, for professional reasons, for pure pleasure or for the simple fact of learning and obtaining more knowledge, there are important keys that will facilitate this process, which, at times, can be complicated.

Confidence

Age has given us autonomy, but also the responsibility to be the standard bearer of our trust . Going back to study can be a challenge for many people, hence they need to regain or consolidate their confidence in their possibilities. In this sense, the environment can also add or subtract.

Biases out

It is important to forget prejudices, to remove them as much as possible. Every day it is more common to see people of all ages in class. However, we have to break down these barriers, because many people still see it as something negative, against nature, when in reality it is the opposite.

Motivation

Motivation and conviction in what is done is essential. If you go back to studying, go with everything and take advantage and enjoy the experience knowing that you have taken the right path.

Planning

In general, studying as an adult implies that possible family and work obligations cause planning to be almost millimeter. Therefore, you have to organize your time well, realistically, but without forcing the pace.

Study habits

Little by little, the study habit is regained after years of losing it. Be that as it may, it is advisable to go slowly, overcoming small challenges until studying is part of the routine again.

Choice

It is essential to make a correct choice of the training that we will do. Also think about what you are looking for with it. Improve your professional performance? ACEPTING new challenges? Feed your curiosity?

The answers to this question will help you a lot to choose one option or another. In this sense, it is advisable not to overstretch the time allocated to the decision : the infinite options can anesthetize our confidence and motivation.

Support

Lean on your people, your family and friends. It may be that there are some moments when you think you will not be able to do everything. That will be when their help will come great -or their fatal absence-.

And now, get down to work. Don’t let anyone tell you that going back to school as an adult is crazy, it is not true. It is a unique opportunity for personal and professional growth.