Exploring the Rise in College Enrollment Among Midlife Adults- Motivations, Barriers, and Personal Challenges

Exploring the Rise in College Enrollment Among Midlife Adults- Motivations, Barriers, and Personal Challenges

College education was formerly known to be done by people between the ages of 18 and 25 right after completing high school. In today’s generation, the school has no age specification or limit since a large number of adults are now joining universities to either continue and complete their studies or apply for an additional course from what they have.

Enrollment to colleges by older people is increasing. Some adults may be joining college for the first time, meaning they did not join college at an early age due to financial conditions, health, or family. Furthermore, some went to college but realized what they studied wasn’t their passion and opted to go back and try something different. Other reasons may include advanced professional degrees, credential degrees, and the ability to retain or obtain the job they want. (O’Connor & Cordova, 2010).

Some challenges that adults might experience when enrolling in college include feeling they don’t belong in college classrooms and having to face the fear of being socially active. Additionally, working memory declines with age (Tyler, n.d), which is a challenge since midlife adults won’t understand information as fast as traditional students. Further, fitting school into their schedules is challenging since they are busy with their jobs and families. It also comes with financial difficulties since they have bills and families to support and pay for their children’s education, making it hard to pay for their own schools. However, solutions to these challenges could be online classes, going to community colleges and opting for evening classes.

I have had challenges with schooling with respect to time management whereby I had to squeeze my plans and accomplish them within a day, such as assignments, commuting from home, lectures and getting enough rest. I solved these challenges by creating schedules and avoiding distractions. Another challenge is money, which is due to the demand for tuition fees, transportation, and food. The best solution would be to prioritize expenses, acquire a scholarship, and find part-time jobs.

In conclusion, midlife adult learning is increasing with time, and everyone has reasons behind why they study later on in life. It can be achieved without many challenges. Adults should not feel discouraged in any way to continue with their studies.

References

Tyler, S. Human Behavior and the Social Environment I.

O’Connor, B., & Cordova, R. (2010). Learning: The Experiences of Adults Who Work Full-Time While Attending Graduate School Part-Time. Journal Of Education For Business, 85(6), 359-368. doi: 10.1080/08832320903449618

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Your textbook states, “Midlife adults in the United States often find themselves in college classrooms. In fact, the enrollment rate for older Americans entering college, often part-time or in the evenings, is rising faster than traditionally aged students”.

Exploring the Rise in College Enrollment Among Midlife Adults- Motivations, Barriers, and Personal Challenges

Why do you believe the enrollment rate for older individuals rises faster than for traditionally aged students? Are there any barriers that a middle-aged person might experience enrolling in college compared to doing it when they were a young adult? Despite your age, what challenges have you faced with your schooling thus far, and have you found any solutions to help make it less challenging?