'No social life': This SIA stewardess juggled school and flying at the same time

While the life of a cabin crew may seem glamorous to many, reality can be far from that. 

From having to clean toilets in planes to surviving on a few hours of sleep, the job can be pretty taxing. 

Despite this, Hazeline Foo, who worked for six years as an air stewardess with Singapore Airlines, managed to juggle that with her hectic university life.

In a YouTube video last Thursday (July 27), the Malaysian documented how she finished her final semester of university while flying for Singapore's national carrier. 

She revealed that when she wasn't on a flight, she spent her layovers and off days studying and working on assignments. 

"It's really difficult to study and fly at the same time. It's not easy," she admitted in the video. 

In fact, she was so busy focusing on her job and school that she hardly had any time for anything else. 

"There's no social life. Just flying, sleeping, eating, studying, doing assignments," she confessed. 

The pandemic threw a wrench in the works

Hazeline, who revealed that she has since quit her job at SIA, shared with AsiaOne that her initial plan didn't involve her studying and flying at the same time. 

In 2020, she had actually saved up enough money from her job as a stewardess to afford to study overseas. 

But then Covid-19 happened. 

"Unfortunately, the pandemic started at the time I was seriously looking up the universities and courses that I was interested in," she shared. 

"Borders were closed and studying overseas became more difficult and less meaningful as I knew I wouldn't be able to fully enjoy my student life." 

After searching for other options, she discovered a Malaysian private university called Inti International University, a school that conducts its classes online. 

"All the lectures were also recorded, so if I could not attend the classes because of flights, I could rewatch the recordings and I could email my lecturers if I had any questions," Hazeline shared. 

There, she took a three-year course in Human Resource Management, which she managed to complete in two and a half years because of credit transfers she had earned from her diploma.

"I thought [going to Inti International University would] be the same as studying overseas in the middle of the pandemic. 

"All universities were conducting online classes at that time. I thought it'll be better to fly and earn some money while studying online than to go overseas but stay in the dormitory alone and attend online classes," she explained to AsiaOne. 

But the journey was no walk in the park. 

Hazeline shared that studying and flying at the same time was "very physically challenging" for her. 

"After waking up from my sleep at the end of a flight, I was usually very drained and had no energy to do anything. But I could not afford to waste any time so I had to force myself to get up and get my laptop right in front of me." 

She also confessed that there were days when she had to take a day off from studying to do nothing but rest her body. 

"However, that also meant I had to double up my effort the following day. Knowing the fact that I had very limited time to complete my assignments or study for exams, and yet physically, I was unable to push myself to do so, was a very stressful thing for me," she shared. 

What a typical layover is like 

In her YouTube video, Hazeline showed what a typical layover was like for her while she was schooling and flying at the same time. 

During a layover in Mumbai, she checked into her hotel at 11pm before heading to the bathroom to remove her makeup and undo her hair. 

After cleaning up, she watched a few YouTube videos before going to sleep. 

The next day, she studied while having breakfast and told her viewers that she was in her final semester at school. 

"It's my university final exam next week. So, after I complete this semester, I'll complete my university," she said with glee. 

After finishing one topic, she took a nap for a quick recharge before grabbing some dinner.

And then around 6.45pm, she prepared for her overnight flight. 

"I had an hour and a half of sleep, so I guess I'll be fine tonight," she told the camera positively. 

The grind doesn't stop back home 

Hazeline finally reached Singapore at around 7am. 

"My eyes turned red after not having any sleep for a night," she shared, adding that this is the reason people call overnight flights 'red-eye flights'. 

So it isn't surprising that she slept for five hours after she reached home. 

One would think that after such a long flight, Hazeline would use her remaining free time to relax and recharge. 

But it was back to the books for her. 

"Tomorrow is my day off, but I think I'm still going to be studying," she confessed. 

Unfortunately, she didn't get to enjoy her off day to the fullest. 

The following morning at around 11am, she explained that she was on a half-day standby the next day from 12am to 12pm, and the day after, she was on a full-day standby from 12am to midnight. This meant that she could be called for any flight. 

But just as she was about to go off for dinner at around 6.30pm, she got called for a flight. This was another overnight flight to South Korea, which was in six hours' time. 

"I'm happy to go to Korea, but it's such a short notice," she said. 

Hazeline went on to explain that because she landed at 7am and has to start preparing for her next flight at around 10pm, it didn't feel like she had a proper. 

"It's kind of like taking my day off away. It's like a fake day off," she pointed out. 

And by 12am, she was at the airport. 

Difficulties sleeping 

Hazeline arrived in South Korea the next day at 11am and headed straight to her hotel. 

"Finally, I'm here! One whole night without sleep," she said. 

As she needed to get food, she had to head out. But as she wanted to get a good night's rest, she aimed to be back by 7pm. 

After her meal, Hazeline spent the rest of her afternoon exploring Myeongdong. 

"I'm walking around and shopping to stay awake. If I go back to the hotel, I'll fall asleep and wake up at night," she explained. 

Even when she was finally able to get to bed, she noted how she would have trouble sleeping. "I'm so tired but I can't sleep," she lamented. 

Hazeline went on to explain that this was a "common struggle" for her. 

"It's just so difficult to manage the sleeping time well," she said. 

"Maybe I shouldn't have gone out right away after I [landed]. Maybe I should have taken [a nap for a few hours] so that I [could] stay up a bit later and have a good rest before I leave the hotel." 

ALSO READ: Dream of becoming a cabin crew? Former SIA stewardess provides tips on how to ace that interview

melissateo@asiaone.com