Students are here at NIU to go to school, but more than that, we are here for the college experience.

For those of us who have to work full time and go to school full time, there usually isn’t enough time to experience much more.

Working 40 or more hours a week is a necessity, not a choice, for many students. I survive solely on my income and financial aid.

This affords me just enough to get by.

For the ideal college experience, the equation goes: The good life = academics + work + a social life.

Finishing assignments and working long hours places a student in a position where they almost always have to sacrifice something.

In the search for a delicate balance, the high-wire act begins. Even simple tasks are hard to make time for – and Comcast expects me to be home from 8 a.m. to noon.

During the first week it becomes apparent: Something must be relinquished, so the social life goes. “It’s OK,” I tell myself, “I had a life before, I’ll have one again.”

It’s frustrating to be unable to be active in campus groups and activities. Idle work hours become times of resentment. Wishing you were elsewhere is no way to go through life.

The second failure came only days later. I didn’t finish all of my 120 pages of political reading, and coming just short wasn’t enough for me.

I know I’m not alone. I look to my left at the other non-traditional student, and her haggard look shows she didn’t finish the homework, either. I don’t even have the added pressure of supporting a family that other students do.

I played catch-up over the second weekend. I was dedicated, and even got ahead.

Then, I overslept. I had managed to stay ahead for five hours.

I got into work that afternoon tired and frustrated, with no end in sight.

That’s when I uncharacteristically snapped at a colleague. I displaced my anger because of their ability to go home when I couldn’t, I felt out-of-control, like the Hulk.

Where did that rage come from? Who was I becoming?

I was so sleep-deprived that the effects started mimicking those of hallucinogens. I had to act.

After just a few weeks, and 100 hours of sleep in 21 days, I took a diminished role at my job. I was beaten down mentally, physically exhausted and emotionally taxed.

The responsibilities I have are similar to those of many college students.

I only hope others can strike that balance I was striving for.

If not, make school a priority like I have.