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Interested in starting a business, learning about artificial intelligence or exploring a new hobby? There\u2019s a class for that.<\/p>\n
Millions of U.S. adults enroll in credit and non-credit college courses to earn professional certificates, learn new skills or to pursue academic degrees. Some older students are seeking career advancement, higher pay and\u00a0job security, while others want to explore their personal interests or\u00a0try new things.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey might have kids, they might be working full-time, they might be older non-traditional students,\u201d said Eric Deschamps, the director of continuing education at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. But returning to school \u201copens doors to education for students that might not have those doors open to them otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Older students, many of whom bring years of work and life experience to their studies, often are juggling courses with full-time jobs, caregiving and other family responsibilities. It is a challenging balancing act but can also sharpen priorities and provide a sense of fulfillment.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what experts have to say about returning to school, what to consider beforehand and how to balance coursework with work and personal commitments.<\/p>\n
UCLA Extension, the continuing education division of the University of California, Los Angeles, offers more than 90 certificate and specialization programs, from\u00a0interior design, early childhood education and accounting to photography, paralegal studies and music production. Individual courses cover a wide range of topics, including retirement planning, writing novels, the business of athletes and artists, and the ancient\u00a0Japanese art of ikebana, or flower arranging.<\/p>\n
About 33,500 students \u2014 nearly half of them older than 35 \u2014 were enrolled during the last academic year. UCLA reported a full-time enrollment of about 32,600 degree-seeking undergraduate students during the same period.<\/p>\n
\u201cI prefer calling our (adult) learners not only continuous, but the new majority student. These are learners who tend to already be employed, often supporting a family, looking for up-skilling or sometimes a career change,\u201d Traci Fordham, UCLA\u2019s interim associate dean for academic programs and learning innovation, said.<\/p>\n
Higher education experts say some adults take classes for professional development as economic concerns, technological advances and other workforce changes create a sense of job insecurity.<\/p>\n
\u201cA great example of that is artificial intelligence. These new technologies are coming out pretty quickly and for folks that got a degree, even just 5 or 10 years ago, their knowledge might be a little bit outdated,\u201d Deschamps said.<\/p>\n
Adults interested in becoming students again may want to assess their time and budgets, and weigh the potential benefits and consequences, including the financial impact, the potential for burnout and rewards of education that may take a while materialize, academic advisors say.<\/p>\n
Deschamps suggests asking where you want to be in 5 or 10 years and how the training and knowledge received through an additional class or certificate can help get you there. For example, if you want to start a microbrewery, learning to brew your own beer or launching a business will help. If a promotion or career change is the goal, training for a new job, refreshing skills or understanding a different industry may help show you are qualified.<\/p>\n
Schools like UCLA and Northern Arizona University are working to make continuing education courses accessible by keeping the cost low in comparison to degree-track classes and offering financial assistance. A variety of learning environments usually are offered \u2014 in-person and online classes, accelerated and self-paced instruction \u2014 to help adults integrate schoolwork with their home and work lives.<\/p>\n
Katie Swavely, assistant director for academic advising and student success at UCLA, started at community college before transferring to UCLA to study anthropology. She said it took her 10 years after graduating to go back for her master\u2019s degree in counseling with a focus on academic advising. Swavely completed that degree in 2020 and credits access to the program through employer-sponsored\u00a0tuition assistance\u00a0from her job at the time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt like in so many ways I didn\u2019t really know who I was or what I wanted to do other than just pay the bills and survive,\u201d said Swavely, who is married and has two children. \u201cIt was hard. And I thought about quitting many times. We had to budget to the extreme and find additional ways to make it work.\u201d<\/p>\n
She added: \u201cThere are questions of how are we going to make it work and do we have the money. As a parent, sacrifices are there all the time. You make those judgment calls every day. But making sure that you\u2019re investing in yourself. There\u2019s always gonna be reasons why it\u2019s not today, not this month, not this year, but it\u2019s also OK to just jump in and go for it and see how it works out.\u201d<\/p>\n
As an avid book lover, Swavely now wants to take a book editing course and hopes to continue her education and enroll in that through the university soon.<\/p>\n
Some experts say one of the main barriers to returning to school is psychological. There might be concerns that their writing skills are rusty and that they don\u2019t know enough math or technology, bringing up feelings of uncertainty or failure.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this is tied to access. Many of our learners, not all of them, haven\u2019t imagined themselves in any kind of higher education, post-secondary education environment,\u201d Fordham said.<\/p>\n
Swavely said it was important for her to build a support network and take advantage of the counseling and advising options that were available to her as a student.<\/p>\n
She encourages adults who are furthering their educations to spend time \u201cfinding your community.\u201d Having people around who helped build up her confidence at home and during classes got her through graduate school, Swavely said. She also suggests setting boundaries and giving yourself grace when you need need help.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest piece of advice is for people to realize you\u2019re never too old to learn,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
#Older #adults #heading #school #represent #majority #student<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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