Ayesha Johnson seems to deal with pressure well.
This semester, Johnson is up anywhere between 4:30 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. so she can arrive at work by 6:30 a.m.
Johnson puts in a eight to 12 hours a day at UPMC as a project manager, and after heads off to school for a three-hour night class.
Johnson is one of many students who balance the demands of being a full-time employee and a full-time student.
One of her biggest challenges is managing her time wisely.
“Trying to live a stress-free life and tak[ing] care of myself mentally and physically is complicated,” Johnson said.
Prioritizing her schoolwork and workload at her job is very tough. Johnson, who currently has a master’s degree in management and technology science, is working toward an MBA. Johnson said that trying to give 100 percent to each area and not lacking in either is hard.
Johnson’s toughest challenge may be money. Johnson has to pay for her schooling out of her pocket.
“It’s very stressful thinking about finances during school,” Johnson said.
Working full-time and attending class can be exhausting with the long hours of studying for tests and doing excessive amounts of homework. Many Point Park University students deal with these dilemmas every day.
A majority of the full-time employees cannot handle going to work and school in the same day; therefore, many attend school on Saturday. Some programs offer accelerated courses, and many students in those can earn a degree quicker than someone who went to school five days a week.
For example, Marcene Benton, network program assistant at Highmark, took on the Saturday Pathways Program at Point Park and received her bachelor’s degree and MBA after three years of studying.
“The program helped me to obtain enough credits to enter the Bachelor of Science program in business. After completing the Pathways Program, I continued in the two-year BS Saturday Fast Start Program. After graduation, I entered the one-year Masters of Business Administration program and graduated May 2008 with my MBA,” Benton said.
