Students differ in shape, size, color, and age. From kindergarten to college, many students are expected to follow a linear educational path regardless of life obstacles and other hindrances. Unfortunately, judgmental and oppressive eyes often intercept any deviation from this path. Lailah Gifty Akita once said, “You are never old to begin self-seeking.” A college education immediately after high school is not the correct path for everyone, as adult students have taken a rise in the collegiate atmosphere. This increase has intrinsically changed career options locally and globally.
An adult learner is anyone in a college or university 25 years old or older. Often, adults decide to enroll in upper level education to develop their financial merit.
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Supporting the financial weight of children, work, living necessities, and school obligation can be a hard load to carry. The preparation for cumulative exams alone takes so much time. The addition of giving your children the love they need, the rest you need, and the ability to function properly at work can be physically, mentally, and emotionally taxing. Loss of sleep with the combination of training the mind in order to absorb the influx of information that’s going to happen during the upcoming lecture is tough. Going home fatigued and making dinner for your family and then hoping to recap the day and possibly studying and or doing some homework all before your body fails for the day. Then you find yourself waking up to an alarm clock indicating you have to go to work the next morning. In-home stressors add complexity to an already complex situation. Approval on campus and interactions with other students can often become negative. Judgment due to age is often looming in the air and often hinders the ability to learn, but don’t fret. There are positives to going back to …show more content…
Enhancing commerciality to acquire a better job position, teaching your children of the importance of education through example, and an increasing in personal satisfaction and enrichment are all outcomes of going back to school. An environmental fear of campus life is a real thing for adult learners. In 2013 there were 8.2 million adult students compared to the 12.2 million students under the age of 25. The rates of increase for adult students are expected to increase higher than students less than 25 years of age according to the national center for educational statistics. The demand for MBAs and the attendance of professional schools is increasing. A master’s degree is almost mandatory in order to obtain a 6-figure career. The support of family members helps whenever the overwhelming feeling of loneliness begins to creep in. My son telling me he’s proud of me nearly brought me to tears and so I encourage everyone thinking about going back to school to dive
Over the past few years, people have begun to see going to college as a way to achieve the American Dream through career-readiness. People used to go to college, hoping to get a better well-rounded education. For most the well-rounded education, it usually came with the courses required for a liberal arts education. The courses would provide a level of analytical and in-depth understanding that would prepare the students for both life and whichever career path chosen. No matter the amount of money paid, parents would be willing to gi...
How to attract and retain adult students is an enduring question for providers of adult education. Adult students must juggle competing demands on their time from study, family, work, and other commitments; their learning goals are often different from those of educational institutions and providers; and their needs and aspirations may change during the education process, sometimes as a result of it. This Brief reviews recent research related to adult student recruitment and retention and provides guidelines for recruiting and retaining adult learners.
As the economy evolves and the job market continues to get more competitive, it’s becoming harder to have a successful career without some kind of college degree. This creates a belief in many young students that college actually is a commodity, something they must have in order to have a good life. There’s many different factors that influence this mindset, high schools must push the importance of the student’s willingness and drive to further their education. College isn’t just a gateway to jobs, but it is an opportunity to increase knowledge and stretch and challenge the student which in return makes them a more rounded adult and provides them with skills they might lack prior to
This report looks at college from the prospective of adults who have not attended college but are considering obtaining a degree. The research results give several statistics related to adults wishing to continue their education and the main concerns that they face in doing so. They mentioned many of the factors that influence adults’ decisions to pursue a post-secondary education and how they will pursue that education. Facts presented in this report show that many people wish that they could further their education. This report will allow me to broaden my viewpoint by not only viewing college’s worth to students recently graduated from high school but also to older adults seeking to return to college.
A high school diploma is not enough to pursue most careers in a difficult economy and job market. Without a college education there are fewer chances for career advancement or high earning potential.This is enough for anyone to rethink a college education. Nontraditional undergraduate students include a large portion of college enrollments. Between 2000 and 2013, enrollment rates for twenty five to twenty nine year olds increased from eleven to thirteen percent and thirty to thirty four year old students stayed steady at a seven percent increase. “The Condition of Education” 2015 Being slightly I tell myself regardless of what my children think I am not too ancient to attend college or start on a new
It seems as though the majority of college students these days aren’t looking to further their education because it’s what they really want, they do it to please their parents, to be accepted by society, or because there’s nothing else for them to do (Bird, 372). These expectations have led to students being unhappy and stressed, and have pushed them into a school or a job that they don’t particularly care for.
After high school what is next? Many recently high school graduates decide about attending college. Although there are downsides such as student debt, stress and anxiety, failure ,overall, attaining a college degree is beneficial because it offers financial stability, helps out the community, more job opportunities, can also be a positive role model to others, and you can follow your dreams of becoming what you have always wanted. Attending college is beneficial for both , student and community. Earning a college degree helps in the community in various ways. For example, if going to college helps in earning more knowledge, it can also help outside of school wise. An example would be that a person with a college degree has the ability to have more employment anywhere you go. Today
Support can help adult students returning to school. A study was conducted to reflect the impact of attending a weekend course on family and work loads (Kirby, Biever, Martinez, & Gomez (2004). Students with a higher level of support from family and their employers experienced accomplishment from the coursework. The knowledge they attained, such as time management, was useful in family life as well as their work life. The study also determined that schools should give some focus to the adult student returning to school and the different set of support they would require. More colleges now offer non traditional programs for older students (Gearon, 2008). The adult student brings a new level of experience to the classroom. These type of students
Self-motivation, self-discipline, time management, and the ability to prioritize are all essential ingredients to graduate successfully. As a single working mother of two kids it is crucial for me to understand where my time is going. The concept of going back to college seemed a little far-stretched, but in today’s economy and job market, it is necessary. I am a mother who leads by example; therefore it is a top priority of mine to balance life and the time commitment to the program as this is a long term investment.
People have very different reasons on why going to college and getting an education is important for them. Some people go to college because that is what is expected of them, and others go because they have nothing else better to do. However, I am interested in going to college and obtaining a good education because it will benefit my family, my country, and me.
“More than one-third of the adult population in the United States has a bachelor’s degree or higher marking the first time in decades of data (Bureau).” However, the underemployment and unemployment rate is proving to devalue a college education. A college degree doesn't mean as much as it used to because more and more people keep getting college degrees, a degree no longer guarantees a job, and often experience supersedes education.
Attending college at different times in someone’s life has its positive and negative factors. Going off to college right after high school is the traditional student, with ages being from 18-years-old to about 22-years-old when graduating with a degree. While there are also students that are more non-traditional that are 23+ years-old that go back and attend college. While being a student at The University of Northwestern Ohio for the past two years I have been in contact with many traditional and non-traditional students. I have been able to hear many stories of why non-traditional students waited to come back and why traditional students are here now right out of high school. With being in contact with these students I have seen many similarities and differences between both groups.
Most people can agree that college is the best choice you can make economically. With a college degree, you have a better chance of paying off your student loans. But what about people who can’t even pay the initial down payment? Who says they have to go to college for four years? Why can’t they get their Bachelors Degree? With any sort of degree in almost any job, your annual pay would be higher than someone who only has a high school diploma. Why does someone have to go to a physical college campus? Can they take college classes online for a fraction of the price?
However, for those that do not wish to go toward the trade route and can afford the cost of higher education a four year university may be highly beneficial. A bachelor’s degree is one of the most common acquired degree among college-bound students. Statically proven, having a bachelor’s degree will lower the student’s chance of unemployment in the future compared to someone with an associate’s degree or less. Although obtaining debt is still a possibility for most millennials due to the rising cost of tuition there are various degrees that have a high return rate due to higher pay. According to Annalyn Kurtz in her article, “Yes, a College Degree is Still Worth It”, those looking to maximize their investment should look toward obtaining a
Higher education in the United States arose as an answer to the need to train clergy for the seminary. Throughout the centuries, higher education has evolved to become one of the principal means in educating individuals in specific areas of study. Individuals seek higher education to become more proficient in a particular occupation, area of study, or as a requisite for employment or advancement in specific fields such as engineering, management, or the sciences. The benefits that individuals who attend institutions of higher learning realize are more than education; the benefits are numerous and consist of socioeconomic benefits as well as personal benefits for the scholar, including income benefits, employment advantages as well as personal advantages.