Since beginning my postgraduate studies a few months ago, I have noticed changes in myself. I feel constantly stimulated, mentally and emotionally; I’m more knowledgeable, a better writer, and have mastered the art of effective time management. This is the beauty of studying.

I needed a break initially. After 16 years of education, I took some time off after my undergraduate degree to work and indulge the travel bug that had been bothering me since my early teens (and won’t ever go away). Yet despite the numerous pleasures and treasures of that year, in which I built up valuable work experience and backpacked solo around the Americas, I knew within a couple of months of graduating and starting my nine-to-five job that the student life was the one I wanted to return to if I could. I actually blogged about it at the time; I remember that realisation dawning.

It’s not that I can’t face working – I love to work, in fact, and would advocate that every student does so. It complements studying in a brilliant way, allows you to bring different skills to the fore, and challenges parts of your mind you can easily neglect when you’re absorbed in the academic bubble. It’s a relief, in many ways, to be accountable to someone else, rather than piling on the pressure to succeed yourself, as studying demands. I know friends who are thrilled to have entered the workforce at last, glad to be earning their own money and able to relax come evening, when they can detach from the office.

But full-time work is intense – it takes up most of our week, actually, if its hours are standard. If only Sweden’s experimental six-hour working day, which saw employee productivity and personal happiness rise, could be implemented everywhere.

And this is precisely what being a student gives back to you. Undeniably, I’m busy: I read for my courses, go to class, write long essays, volunteer, travel when I can, and juggle three part-time jobs to boot. But because I’m not drained from a day spent at a desk, I can find enthusiasm for everything. I can plan my days around public events, meetings, reading for pleasure, cycling, and other activities that often just required too much effort after a long day at the office.

Since embarking on my year-long course here, I’ve been repeatedly amazed at the opportunities student status provides. Not only am I constantly learning through my course, but I’m granted privileged access to certain buildings (like the beautiful Senate House Library, and other University of London buildings), certain people (my professors, esteemed in their fields, and my peers) and certain events (such as the upcoming London Mayoral Candidates’ Debate, for which I was able to simply pick up a free ticket at the SU Shop while other members of the public must apply in a lottery).

And there’s more: things I mostly took for granted as an undergraduate, I maximise to the full now. Access to journals and online material via the LSE library; careers advice and job advertisements; the free use of high-tech equipment such as that in the PuLSE Radio studio; amazing opportunities to travel with the Grimshaw Society; discounts on everything from food to conferences to cinema tickets, with a flash of my student ID. As I wrote in my blog post last year, even being able to book a doctor’s appointment is so much easier when you don’t have to book time off work in order to go.

There’s something remarkably self-indulgent about studying, some would say. It’s an enormous privilege which only really benefits me, in the short-term at least. But with London life feeling ever more high-pressure, rents skyrocketing and competition increasing for just about everything, I’m grateful for the opportunity to take some time out from the rat race. The greatest gift of the student life is the flexibility – and I’m taking advantage of it before it’s gone.