Duluth Superior Magazine / September 2011 / Going Back to College as an Adult

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Going Back to College as an Adult

It’s not an easy step to make, going back to college as an adult. Aside from fitting in class time into one’s work and/or parenting schedule, there are the inevitable worries about being seen as an outsider, an interloper, the “weird old person” in class. There’s good news, though, for those students who may have been referred to as “non-traditional,” once upon a time: traditions have changed.

College is no longer the sole dominion of people in their late teens and early twenties. With the advent of the internet, especially, becoming a student for the first time, picking up a new degree, or resuming an abandoned education is much easier and much more common than it ever has been.

“We’re consistently about 30 percent of enrollment,” says Peter Nordgren, Interim Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Outreach at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. “In age 25 and older, we have the highest percentage of adult learners in the UW system. Of our 30 percent, about half are in the distance-learning center – that’s around 450 students – and the other half attend in the campus program,” attending day or night classes.

At The College of St. Scholastica, the percentages are similar. Don Wortham, the school’s Executive Director of Extended Studies, says that, while the school has about 2200 typical 9-to-5-type students, “We have about 1700 students that don’t fit that profile.”
Times have changed, and area colleges are eager to change with them. This entails a number of different steps, from advisement to the acquisition of financial aid, to scheduling the right mix of brick-and-mortar and online classes. Perhaps one of the most important steps, though, is simply easing the returning or first-time student into the environment, making them comfortable.

Hilary Ramsey works at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, in the Continuing Education department. Ramsey, a former adult learner herself, understands quite well what it takes to go to school after one’s life has already had a bit of a chance to unfold, and she puts a lot into helping calm prospective students’ minds.

“The best way to ease the fears of returning students is to simply walk them through the various processes and explain how the campus works – everything from the library to computer labs,” Ramsey says. “Face-to-face interactions go a long way in calming adult learner anxiety, and in CE, we are always ready to answer more questions or arrange a second meeting if necessary. We understand that this may be a big step and we are available to assist.”

Once a person decides to become a student, Ramsey (or one of her coworkers) is there for that person, throughout their journey. “I assist with the multitude of questions posed by individuals who are interested in classes at UMD,” Ramsey says.

Some prospective learners come with very specific objectives, such as completing an accounting degree, while others see the need for more education but are not sure where to start, she explains.

She guides individuals through registration, navigating the UMD website, getting financial aid information, and earning about various degree programs. In addition, if prospective learners feel they need more specialized assistance, like determining a major to pursue or career path to focus on, CE provides a career counselor to meet with and assist prospective learners.

The story is much the same at each local college, regardless of the field of study. No longer are adult students forced to rearrange their lives to get the education that may have eluded them once upon a time. These days, the colleges will bend over backwards for non-trads.

“Some of our social-science areas, such as social work, operate on pretty flexible schedules to accommodate students who might have to commute or might have to come to campus after working a full day,” says Peter Nordgren. “The program I teach in, Library Science, offers its full program late afternoon or evening.” UW-Superior also offers a wide variety of online courses, and even television courses for those who are less apt to surf the internet.

Don Wortham, like Hilary Ramsey, is also a former extended-studies student. He once had to decide to make the tough decision to go back to school, as well, but he is a prime example that it’s a step worth taking. “It was tough,” he says. “It was a tough economic decision, it was a tough emotional decision, it was a tough psychological decision. So I feel like I understand where folks are coming from, who are making these choices for themselves. I changed careers completely.”

But have no fear, is what these folks are saying, essentially. “Don’t be afraid to explore,” Wortham says. “It’s what we need to do to be human. Keep exploring.”

So if you’re on the fence about going back to get that degree, to change course completely, or just to take a class for fun, know that there are many others like you in all of our local colleges, and all you need to decide is which path you want to start walking on.