A VPN on a school or work network encrypts your traffic between your device and the VPN server, so other people on the same Wi-Fi cannot read it. It does not make you invisible to the network: the school or employer can still see that you are connected to a VPN and when, and a school or work device or account can be monitored whatever network it is on.
Most institutional filters work by inspecting your requests and matching them against blocklists: they see you're trying to reach a streaming domain or a social platform and drop the connection. Using a VPN to get around that filter can break the acceptable-use policy, and the administrator can see that a VPN is in use even though the pages inside the tunnel are hidden. If a filter blocks research, reference or communication tools you need, ask IT to review the block.
A word on responsibility, because it matters: respect your organisation's acceptable-use policy. Many schools and workplaces prohibit bypassing network controls, and a VPN is a tool, not a licence to ignore rules you've agreed to. Where a VPN is allowed, the legitimate use is protecting your connection from other people on a shared network, and if a filter wrongly blocks an educational or reference site, IT can fix it. GhostShield's no-logs servers keep no record of what you do through the VPN, and with 20 locations in 16 countries you can pick a nearby exit. Use it where it's allowed, understand your network's policies, and ask IT when a filter gets something wrong.