New news stories and articles about nontraditional students

People are talking about non-traditional students...

I decided to see what people were saying on the internet and in news stories about nontraditional students lately.

I will be putting this information soon on the Nontraditional Student website.

It was fun to find these thoughtful articles today.

Nontraditional Students Enrich U.S. College Campuses

This article focuses on the reasons that nontraditional students are going back to school, and how their presence is reshaping the classroom today.

The Nontraditional Medical Student site has a special page telling nontraditional students how they can get into medical school:
http://www.nontraditionalmedicalstudent.com/medwhere.html

This is an article about U.S. Psychology students abroad – many are nontraditional
http://www.psichi.org/pubs/articles/article_490.asp

Utah State nontraditional students must keep their lives balanced

Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming now offer a nontraditional student scholarship.

Information about The Daniels Fund:
(news article from 2007)
http://www.dcnewspress.com/site/tab11.cfm?BRD=2713&dept_id=560326&newsid=19168933&PAG=461&rfi=9

The fund website is located here:
http://www.danielsfund.org/Scholarships/index.asp

I will be finding more articles and information soon. I hope you enjoy these.

Online vs. face-to-face classes - which are better?

There is so much to consider when a non-traditional student is going back to college after a break.

Some questions he or she can ask are:

1. Can I afford college?
2. If I get a loan, how will I pay it back?
3. How will I go to school and still fulfill my family obligations?
4. Can I afford NOT to work while I am in school?
5. What kind of classes should I take, online or “regular” classes?
6. Are online classes WAY harder than regular classes?

Let's just pick one of these issues today - online vs. face-to-face classes.

I want to talk about choices here, and we will. But we must realize that sometimes in the real world, a student has a choice - and sometimes he or she does not.

REAL LIFE SOMETIMES SETS THE RULES.
Students must fit classes in a set schedule. Also, there may be pre-requisite classes that are only offered at a certain time OR online. And that's okay. You just have to work with what is available.

One thing is for sure - it can be hard figuring out just what classes you need to take, AND in what order.

GETTING HELP IS A GOOD IDEA
Getting a good college counselor to help with a schedule can really help. And knowing the professor’s reputation can also be helpful. That’s where a free service like profeval.com can be very handy.

WHICH KIND OF CLASS IS HARDER?
I think that taking online classes can be just as difficult as taking in-person classes; in fact, I think they take a lot more time and effort. Personally, being in a class with others helps me understand the concepts being taught in a college class. Also, I feel like I can absorb things easier when the teacher explains it, and I take notes, which I can study later.

If you are a self-started, and very responsible, chances are that you can handle an online class. You must be organized. You must check due dates often for yourself and keep a good calendar.

WHAT ABOUT A JOB SCHEDULE?
There is not always a choice on which type of class to take, especially for the non-traditional student, who must often balance family and job responsibilities with school, and only have some times to work with for their class schedules.

Online classes and assignments can be taken or done at any time, as long as deadlines are met. I think that’s one very powerful reason they are becoming more and more popular.

DO PEOPLE (or EMPLOYERS) RESPECT ONLINE CREDENTIALS?
Are online classes respected as much as face-to-face classes? Maybe not always, but I think as more time goes by, this will be less and less of a problem. I think that the school that offers the class makes a difference, though, so if you are attending a respected school online or in person, that can make a difference in the quality of your education.

MISSING AN ONLINE CLASS
If you have ever taken an online class, you know that if the class is required to all log in at the same time and respond to the teacher, whoever is absent is really missed, and even missing one online class can really get a person behind on his or her work. So you really can not miss an online class. Period.

COMBINATION ONLINE AND IN-PERSON CLASSES
Some online classes require you to meet the professor and touch base once or more. I think this can be a good idea if the people in the class are near enough to the school to do it.

THE PLUSES OF FACE-TO-FACE CLASSES
Some people learn better in person with a traditional class. That’s the way I learn best, but others learn just as well by themselves. Personally, if I have a choice, I choose face-to-face classes, because I learn better in a group.

I feel that other points of view are easier to get in a face-to-face class. Also, I feel that I can get to know the teacher and the other students better face to face. Study groups are easier to form there, too.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?
Whichever YOU are taking and like. And the trend is towards more online classes, to make it easier for students to get the education they need. So online classes are here to stay, and are a growing trend. As students and teachers get more used to them, I think they will get even better.

I think the online vs. in face-to-face classes choice is mainly personal, and sometimes there isn't a choice due to schedule conflict.

For me, face-to-face is just plain better, but I have had some great online classes, too. I think it’s great to have both kinds of classes. It wasn’t available when I first went to college.

So... non-traditional students have a great choice now. The online classes are opening up and many more courses are offered that way, making it possible for more non-traditional students to take the classes they need.

And that is always good.

ES

Sources for this article:
Chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/2263/big-illinois-online-degree-program-gets-thumbs-up
Slashdot – Online vs. Traditional degree?
http://ask.slashdot.org/askslashdot/05/11/04/2316238.shtml?tid=146&tid=4
Students flocking to online study...from Seattle Pi.com
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/348198_online22.html
Teachers reflect on how they can get to know students online
at thejournal.com
http://thejournal.com/articles/15358_4
Are Online Classes Better? My Personal Experience by Kathryn Vercillo

Getting the word out... and redoing the website!

Last week, I decided to write a lens (like a web page or a story) about Non-traditional students on the Squidoo pages. I titled it "What People Need to Know about Non-Traditional Students." I went on to list some things about non-traditional students like their issues, etc. I then posted it to Squidoo. Well, it hasn't gotten a lot of readers. I think I will need to scope it down to a smaller subject.

Here are some of my ideas:

1. Hints for Non-Traditional Students - finding a good daycare
2. Learning Groups for older students
3. Polishing up Study Skills for new college learners
4. Should you go back to college?
5. The Best Scholarship Sites out there!

I like #5 best. The most popular of all the sites is the one I did yesterday. It's about KUNG FU - The TV Series. I just loved David Carradine as Caine.
________________________________________________

THE NON-TRADITIONAL STUDENT WEBSITE
I am redoing this site this week. I even made it a new logo! I have some new story links on there that I know you would enjoy. Just click below to go there and read about real non-traditional students and their stories.

Read Non-traditional Student Stories Here

I would also love to hear your stories. You can send them to me here, or I can post them on the website.

Non-Traditional Students - don't give up!

THE LETTER - GIVING UP ON A DREAM

Recently, I received a letter from a non-traditional student that has stopped going to school.

"I have to give up my dream..." she said.

I don't know all the details about her situation, but I was sorry to hear about it.

This person simply cannot continue with school because of her many responsibilities - - like working full-time and taking care of her family.

Hearing about this, I was sad, but I understood, because going back to school can be even HARDER for non-traditional students than for traditional students.

Why?

Because non-traditional students must often support children, take care of home duties, worry about money, and have schedule difficulties.

Some non-traditional students take out loans. Some try for scholarships. I did both. Although I was not selected for a scholarship, I did receive a grant that helped a lot.

If the non-traditional student's family is supportive, this can make the difference. But not all non-trads have a partner who can support them through school, or even give moral support.

Some families just don't understand the choice to get more education, and don't want to help.

So... some non-traditional students have a MUCH harder path they must follow.

I hope that the person who wrote me will consider going back someday, especially since it's her dream to do that.

SOME HELPFUL WEBSITES FOR NON-TRADITIONAL STUDENTS

Are you thinking of going back to school? Are you considering going back for a second time?

You may want to check out these links to help you in your search.

NON-TRADITIONAL LINKS:

The Non-Traditional Student Website (mine- a work in progress...) :-)

Non-Traditional Student Scholarship Links

Discover the Work you were Born to Do (a quiz)

College Re-entry advice from About.com

The Advantages of Being an Older Student
By Vickey Kalambakal

Some of these links are new - (I just found them.)
Write back and let me know of other good links.

Well, I'm back to work - I hope you all have a great week.

-Elizabeth

More about Study Groups

This photo is from Clarita@morguefile.com. She has a website at http://community.webshots.com/user/clarita137. She lives in Rome.

Today I want to remind non-traditional students about the power of study groups. I was in several study groups when I was a non-traditional student at Western Ky. University. They really helped me prepare for tests, share the workload, and see things from other points of view.

Also, I felt like I was making important connections that I still have today.

There is a great article on study groups here at About.com:
http://adulted.about.com/od/studysmart/a/study_groups.htm

In the article, Sharon Daugherty shares her views about study groups and why they help non-traditional students. She suggests picking a diverse group because then you will get many different takes on the same lessons. Also, each member will tend to excel in a different area.

It's not necessary to "go it alone" when you are in school. My advice is to take advantage of a study group for every class if you can. If there is not already a study group you can join, you can make your own. Simply ask people in the class if they would like to be in a study group. You may be surprised at the positive response.

Success Stories...

Nothing helps non-traditional students more than success stories. Just knowing that other people have actually gone back to school and succeeded can really bolster self-confidence in the first-time Non-traditional Student.

I found a great article that helps non-traditional students get that jolt of confidence that they need. It's at FastWeb, which is also a great site to look up scholarships.

Here is the link:
FastWeb Success Stories from Non-Traditional Students

Want to live a long time? Stay in school!

A great new New York Times article explains that the best way to live longer is... to stay in school!

Here's the link!

Extra - Extra! Article by Andy Schiller makes the Nontraditional Student News!

I knew it... I just knew it. In an article HERE, Andy Schiller quotes statistics from the U.S. Department of Education. Guess what? Non-traditional students are the fastest-growing group of people enrolled in college!

Here's a quote from his article:

"As thousands of these adults return to the higher education market, they are making a huge impact. The non-traditional student is becoming more the norm in the college classroom."

We non-traditional students just KNEW this had to be a trend. I remember seeing more and more non-traditional students every semester up to last semester.

Here's what else he says:

"• The number of students taking classes online tripled to 2.2 million in the year 2002.
• The proportion of four-year colleges offering online programs grew from 84 percent to 90 percent in 2005.
• Total enrollment in all distance learning courses across the United States has more than doubled since 1995 (754,000 to 1.9 million)."

Check out this article HERE. It's on the news.searchforcolleges.com site. How interesting! I can't wait to read it all again. I agree with Mr. Schiller that colleges and universities are going to have to pay more attention to non-traditional students and their needs and wants. They are going to be an even bigger group in the future, and I think that is a good thing.