Reading, Reading, and More Reading: How to fall in love with your coursework

I don't know the last time that you may have had a conversation with a graduate student either in their Master's or PhD work; but if you had you would probably note the amount of times they bring up the words: reading, articles, reading, taking notes on readings, and yea more reading.

Reading is the staple of post-graduate work. You are expected to devote yourself to theory, models, contemporary and preeminent thinkers in the field. I am not kidding when I say a light week of reading is 600 pages.

I am in week 2 at SOAS and I am realizing very quickly that when you decide to go full time for your education you are expected to be spending 40 hours a week in class, tutorial, and reading. While class and tutorials only make up 7 hours of that full-time commitment a week, that means the rest is self-study and the completion of readings.

I've been asked the past few days by a couple friends how I am not "burned out" or enduring intense boredom with the quantity of reading I'm doing.

I don't know if there is a single answer to that question but I think I can for sure narrow it down to three reasons.

1. I love what I'm studying. I am not kidding when I say going to class and discussing the concepts of what I am learning is one of the best things in my life. Most post-graduates I know are in love with the classroom. They love being involved and informed in the discussions. Needless to say, if you want to be involved and not seem like a total dunce in class you have to do the readings. That in itself is a pretty big motivator.

2. Study habits are just that: habits. I am not, by nature, very good at studying. To be honest I would be really surprised to find someone who said that studying came naturally.

It takes practice.

I didn't really get "good" at studying until I was nearly done with my undergraduate degree after I had realized that I couldn't just get away with memorizing key terms and dropping them occasionally in discussions. It is not that easy. My best advice if you struggle at making yourself sit down and read for a few hours at a time, is to start with things you really like. Pick up Harry Potter or any book that is entertaining and set a timer for an hour and a half and put your phone in a different room. It works on your ability to focus on one thing for a set period of time.

Train your self-discipline.

3. I've practiced the art of skimming. Now this may sound like cheating but I promise there is more to this than just glancing over an article (totally defeats the purpose of this post).

When I read an academic article for the first time, the first thing I do is read the introduction and then I skip all the way to the conclusion. I do this because I want to make sure I have a firm understanding of the argument that the researcher is trying to make. I usually will write down the key questions they ask in the introduction and the answers that they find.

Then, and only then will I begin to read the body of the article.

This "bookend" approach to academic reading really helps if you are trying to find key concepts, themes, and don't want to get bogged down in the fluff of academic inquiry.

I will generally take notes through the first read through and then take a 10min break.

After that break I will generally re-read the article again, skimming the things I feel confident about and focusing on the topics and areas of the paper that I find challenging.

Over the past two years these are the ways that I have kept myself motivated to read the coursework. It has led (thankfully) to a real appreciation for academic materials and for the research being done in the field. Without which, I would not have known or desired to understand what I want to study.

Yeah it takes a little bit of work, but if you really care about what you are studying I promise it gets really easy to sit down, quiet the periphery, and enjoy (really enjoy) reading coursework just like you enjoy your favorite books.

I'm going to leave it there for today because I have another 150 pages due tomorrow and time just can't be wasted.

-K