Doing a postgrad means signing up to having a bit more on your plate. You’ll be balancing finances, managing a high workload, figuring out your career and perhaps living in a new town, away from friends and family – all at the same time. But it’s an opportunity that’s likely to be rewarding, intellectually challenging and transformative. So how do you make the most of it while keeping stress at bay?

Student groups and universities are concerned about rising stress levels. Last year Universities UK’s mental wellbeing working group discovered that campus counselling services are seeing an annual increase in demand of about 10%, with mental health professionals identifying anxiety and stress as the cause.

A 2014 survey by the charity Student Minds found that stress was the second most commonly cited challenge to mental health among students.

The upside of all this research is that there is a more open conversation on campuses about mental health, and postgraduates are being encouraged to seek support if it’s needed.

Here’s some advice from experts and postgraduate students on what to look out for – and what helps:

You don’t have to be perfect

“Students on postgraduate courses are generally there because they did well in their undergraduate degree, and they have high expectations of success at postgraduate level,” says Mel Withers, head of counselling at the University of Sussex. “They can then put a lot of pressure on themselves and become perfectionists, which is hugely stressful and demanding.”

Coupled with this, Withers suggests that being older, postgraduate students might find it harder to admit that they are struggling. “Speak out. Speak to a colleague, to a fellow student, to a professional. Don’t think you’ve just got to struggle on because you’re an adult.

“Academics can help by managing students’ expectations about what they should have achieved at different stages of the course,” Withers adds.

Nicky Lidbetter, the chief executive of Anxiety UK, a charity that has issued guidance about stress for students, agrees that postgraduates tend to feel the pressure to perform. “There’s more of a financial consequence to doing well, due to being older and, in some cases, taking time out of the workplace. At undergraduate there’s a bit more leniency about having downtime.”

But while coping with this pressure isn’t easy, spending punishing hours in the library isn’t the solution. Lidbetter and Withers agree that allowing yourself to take breaks and plan fun things to do is the key to improving both your wellbeing and your performance.

Plan your year carefully, including holidays

“A master’s year is all about scheduling, really preparing yourself for what you’re signing up to for before diving in,” says Lidbetter. “That means looking at when those deadlines are going to hit and planning for them. But when I say scheduling, it’s not all work, work, work. It’s about short bursts of intensive concentration rather than long slogs in front of the computer.”

Postgraduate students agree. “I found it hard at first to have the confidence to take time out from studying,” says Rosie Edmundson, who completed an MA in education with the Open University while also working in student support at a school. “But the more anxious I got, the less motivated I was to work, so it was counterproductive not to have breaks.”

Olivia Havercroft, 27, who is doing a part-time MA in history at the University of Manchester alongside her job, says: “I’ve helped manage stress by taking a weekend when I can, and a week off each term, to relax.

“Getting that space away from academia is crucial. It helps you think more clearly, which will help you do better. Part of this is understanding that an MA is just an MA, it’s not my life.”

Seek peer support

“Having a good support network is very important and can help when things get tough,” says Nahid Saiyed, who works in student services at the University of Birmingham. “Luckily one of most enjoyable aspects about postgraduate degrees is the opportunity for building networks with other people.”

But the social side of a master’s can be something students find tough at first, Withers warns. They may have lost the busy social life they had as undergrads, and often find themselves doing paid work alongside their studies which cuts down on free time.Her advice is to “find a study buddy, or get other students in your cohort together once a week or a month to chat about the course”. While this has undoubted academic benefits, it also provides the social pleasures of conversation among people with shared interests.

“Once I got to know other students, we formed an academic support network – and going to the pub once a week helped,” says Havercroft. “I would recommend joining reading groups, talking to PhD students, going to work-in-progress seminars: these can all help if you’re serious about an academic career.”

Take care of yourself and make use of what the university offers

Find out at the start of the year what services your university provides for postgraduates; there are likely to be counselling, mindfulness or meditation sessions.

“At Sussex we have workshops specifically tailored for postgraduates. These services give advice around things like managing finances or navigating the assessment system. I’m sure most universities would do the same,” says Withers.

Saiyed adds: “At Birmingham we provide counselling, psycho-educational workshops, therapy groups, self-help resources and guidance on the disabled students allowance, all of which are useful for people experiencing mental health difficulties.”

In terms of how you can manage your own stress, Lidbetter recommends trying to keep some routine, eating well, not drinking too much caffeine and making sure you get enough sleep. “These are all things we know we need to do. It’s hard to remember while you’re studying, but they really impact on wellbeing.”

Edmundson recommends downloading an app such as Headspace, which teaches meditation and breathing techniques that can help if you’re feeling overwhelmed by essay deadlines.

Finally, remember that stress is normal from time to time. “It is almost inevitable that during the year there will periods that will be stressful, but provided it is acknowledged and managed, it can help with personal growth,” says Saiyed.

Grace Pickles, 23, who’s coming the end of a postgrad at Manchester University, says she accepted stress as part of the deal. “I put myself in this position. Reminding myself that while it was going to be a tough few years, it’d be worth it in the end, is what kept me going.”

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