More colleges and universities are enrolling nontraditional learners—adults who have completed some college education but didn’t finish a credential or those who are re-enrolling to gain new skills or degrees to promote their career goals. In spring 2024, nearly 2.5 million students age 30 or older were enrolled in an undergraduate program, a 3.5 percent year-over-year increase, according to National Student Clearinghouse data.

A Jan. 22 webinar by Jobs for the Future and Achieving the Dream highlighted the perspectives of adult students enrolled in community colleges in three states to detail what could benefit their achievement and success.

Students say: A survey of 645 learners age 21 and older from nine community colleges revealed several demographic trends.

• Three-quarters of adult learners in the sample were women, and 33 percent were women from historically underserved racial and ethnic populations.
• Seventy-six percent of adult learners have earned some college credits but no degree.
• Over half (55 percent) are caretakers of dependent children or elderly adults.
• Sixty-three percent of the sample received Pell Grants, and just over half (53 percent) earn less than $30,000 annually.
• Three-quarters of adult learners are employed in some capacity; 48 percent work full-time.

A focus group conversation with 57 students showcased additional trends in student enrollment and persistence:

• A majority of adult learners had specific career goals in mind, whether it was upskilling, reskilling or working toward a promotion. However, when meeting with an adviser, 50 percent said they did not discuss career options during the session, and 53 percent felt they did not have adequate information about their chosen career field.
• Many spoke of the difficulties balancing their academics with work or other commitments.
• Students also indicated they were seeking out resources on their own to meet their needs but they still needed additional support from the institution to address them.
• While working with advisers, some learners had positive experiences, but others shared it was difficult to reach their academic adviser. “In general, we learned it could be hard to get timely information or to schedule appointments at convenient times,” Jobs for the Future director Rachel McDonnell said during the webinar.

Advising support: A tangential survey of advisers by the two groups found:

• About half of advisers have access to labor market information and know how to use it .
• Fewer than half have adequate knowledge of credit for prior learning. A similar number review students’ past education or training to inform advising practices.
• Many advisers are aware that adult students need additional support and options, but few have received training specific to adult-focused professional development.

“Advisers are often one of the first people that adult learners talk to about their career and program selection, so it’s critical that they have the tools to provide learners with guidance on their options,” McDonnell explained.

Moving ahead: Webinar presenters recommended colleges better engage adult learners through strategic interventions including better advising and support processes, disaggregation of data, inventorying CPL policies, onboarding and training for staff and faculty to work with adult learners, and aligning academic programs with labor market needs.

Each college in the initiative applied different strategies to meet adult learners’ needs and has effected change on its population.

Delta College in Michigan created a comprehensive webpage for community members to find information on credit for prior learning and established a guidebook as well as a student tool to assist in the advising process. The college also launched a digital marketing campaign to increase awareness of the offering. As a result, the college saw a 5 percent increase in CPL awarded for students in computer science programs.

Atlantic Cape Community College in New Jersey redesigned its onboarding process for post-traditional learners as well as simplified the re-admission process for stopped-out students. The college also implemented solutions to previous barriers, such as leveraging scholarship funds to reduce outstanding balances for learners.

How does your institution support the retention and completion of adult learners? Tell us more.