The Non-Traditional Student Blog (BA): family

Showing posts with label family. Show all posts

You can do it!

FRIENDS AND FAMILY - ARE THEY A SUPPORT?
Families and friends of nontraditional students can be two things. They can be a help and a support, or they can just be a drag. They can give you positive messages, or they can give you negative messages. If you are a nontraditional student, you can choose what sort of messages you want to hear.

NONTRADS NEED POSITIVE MESSAGES
Nontraditional students need and deserve positive messages, but some do not get them. Families or friends sometimes say, "You are going to do WHAT?" and the nontraditional student has to explain and defend their dream of going back to school. Be practical! the nay-sayers advise. Don't go back to school!

Well - what is more practical than working towards a better future? Nothing! So what should you do when you hear a negative message like that? I say, don't listen to it! Just say "no" to letting it affect you, too.

COME BACK TO THE "WHY" OF BEING A NONTRAD
Always remember, nontraditional students, that you are not going back to school for no reason. Often, you have been wanting to do that for years, but have not been able to, for one reason or another. Sure, going back to school can be tough - it's expensive, it takes time, and a lot of hard work.

But you have good reasons for going back to school. Write these reasons down again if you want to and remember these reasons if you have forgotten. One reasons might be to improve your job situation. Another might be to improve yourself. Put all your reasons down. Once you have done that, read them again, then pat yourself on the back for taking action!

WHAT TO DO NEXT
Next, surround yourself with POSITIVE input, in order to bolster your effort. Do your friends help and support you? How about your family? You must hang around with positive people, not those that bring you down or make you doubt yourself or your dreams.

WHAT NONTRADS NEED
Nontraditional students need support, not bashing. They need understanding and caring people to help them on their educational journey. It's a long, tough trip towards that diploma or certificate. Nontraditional students must juggle family, work responsibilities, AND sometimes misunderstandings from family or friends.

A NOTE TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS
Are you a friend or a family member of a nontraditional student? Then know that they need you to be supportive, caring, and understanding. Be that shoulder to lean on. Be that caring listener when a nontraditional students just needs to vent sometimes.

A NOTE TO NONTRADS
Nontrads: know that you can do it. Even if you have to do it alone, you can do it. You are a trailblazer for others that will come after you. And if you want to meet other people who can help you in your journey, seek out a school with a nontraditional student organization or a supportive administration that understands your needs. Better yet: find a school that offers both.

If you can't find such a group, you can join the free Yahoo nontrads group online. This group's members are also nontrads or on their way to becoming nontrad students. They will be happy to support you. Remember: you are worth supporting, and you are worth admiring.

And, more important, never forget... that:

YOU CAN DO IT!

ES
The Nontraditional Student Website
The Nontraditional Student Yahoo Group
Help and support for all nontrads!

Two Top Non-Trad Issues...

TWO TOP NONTRAD ISSUES

A recent poll I had on this site is now over.

These are the top two issues from the poll that some non-traditional students are thinking about:

1. 72% (16): Keeping up with family and job issues. I can really understand this one, because taking courses takes a LOT of time, and so does working and taking care of a family.

I know that sometimes it's a hard choice between taking care of a sick child and going to class. There really isn't a choice sometimes.

I know of one teacher that allowed a mom to bring her child sometimes. I think that was VERY understanding. There simply was no other option for that non-traditional student sometimes.

About job issues, if a person works fulltime, he or she is already tired at night, but if he or she is taking a class, it just isn't possible to stop after work and rest. There is a lot more to do, every day, to keep up.

#2: 40% (9) Connecting with other older students: this one I can also relate to.

It does make it so much easier when there are other students to talk to about school that are your same age.

Sometimes schools have student groups that fill this need. I think this is such a good idea. Older students and students with families and job responsibilities can then have a sounding board for their issues. This can really help.

There is a lot of stress that older students have to deal with that younger students don't have. Older students have home, career, transportation, job, money, isolation, and a lot of other issues that can come up.

These things really do matter to older students, and it's so helpful to talk to an advisor or (even better) a friend who has been there.

For people who are non-traditional students who do not already have a group, please consider joining the Nontraditional Student Forum on Yahoo.

This is a growing group of older students nationwide who talk about many different issues.

There are also some valuable links on the group site that non-traditional students may find useful.

Until next time, I am:
Nontraditionally Yours,
--Elizabeth
The Nontraditional Student Yahoo Group
The Nontraditional Website

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10 New Year's Questions Just for Non-Traditional Students

Photo by siilur@morguefile.com

If you are like me, you will make a list of things you want to accomplish in 2008. In order to make that list, you have to ask yourself some important questions.

TEN (10) IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FOR NON-TRADITIONAL STUDENTS FOR THE NEW YEAR

Here are 10 questions you can ask yourself in order to find out if you have your priorities in order for the new year - - 2008.

1. Are you taking courses that will point you towards a job or career that you will like, or even love? If you are not sure about what you want to do, you can take a Tickle test online.

2. Are you taking time out once in awhile for your family and for yourself while you are in school?

3. Have you pre-registered for classes? This can often be done online now. Make sure to pre-register at the earliest date possible, so you can get your required classes.

4. Have you contacted the loan department at your school? Sometimes they must get your OK'd student loan notice via email before you can register online.

5. Are you organized? Have you bought all the books, notebooks, and supplies you will need for next semester? It's always better to buy these early. You will also want to print out all the syllabi for each class.

6. Have you taken a Learning Styles test? If not, you can take one here.

7. Did you arrange to pay for school next semester? You can check out your options at the official FAFSA site, and you can also check out the Scholarship Page at the Non-Traditional Students site.

8. Have you joined a local Non-traditional students group? You can search for groups on the Non-Trads site, or you can start a group yourself, and list it when you are done.

9. Is all your paperwork in order at your school? If you are not sure, you need to contact your school advisor to check this out. That way, you don't miss a class or prerequisite you might need.

10. Does your alarm clock have new batteries? Also, do you own a backup alarm? This may help you if you have face-to-face classes next semester.

11. You can add your own questions and hints for non-traditional students by adding comments below this post. Thanks - and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The poll is in - important issues for non-trads

Following are the results of the Non-Traditional Student Poll. I have bolded and enlarged the top 5 answers, which now are going in the NEW poll to select the top three Non-Trad issues. I also put them in blue.

New Poll: (pick 3) What are the top issues that concern non-trads today?

Finding money for college (2) 13%
Keeping up with job and family responsibilities (9) 60%
Being able to register for the proper classes (3) 20%
Getting recognition for effort from family (1) 6%
Being able to access financial aid and understand it (2) 13%
Finding good daycare that they can trust (1) 6%
Fitting in with younger students (5) 33%
Getting good career advice from counselors (6) 40%
Not being able to afford college at all (3) 20%
Finding good housing at affordable rates (2) 13%
Connecting with other older students (5) 33%
Transportation to and from class (0) 0%
Relating to other younger students (1) 6%
Getting enough support from school administrators (3) 20%
Deciding what to take at school (3) 20%
Procrastination – not taking more classes (5) 33%

I was surprised.

I really thought that finding good daycare or transportation would get more votes. We had 15 students take the poll. This time, I'm aiming for at least 20 people to take the next poll. If you are reading this, scroll down on the right and choose the 2 issues YOU think are the most important to non-traditional students today.

Study Groups for Non-traditional Students

Greetings, fellow non-traditional students and those who are thinking about becoming non-traditional students. Today I am going to talk about my study groups that I made while in college for the second time, as an older student.

This is the second time I've chosen to talk about study groups. I did so once in November as well. I really think they are important, and can make the difference of at least ONE GRADE POINT every time you use them.

ABOUT STUDY GROUPS - AND WHY THEY CAN BE HARD TO START
I have had a request to talk about study groups. A writer recently told me that organizing or having a study group was almost impossible for him because everyone lived so far apart. My experience of using study groups was in a face-to-face class. We had the same difficulty in getting people together. For one thing, we lived in different areas. Although everyone could make it to class, some people had a very long drive to class. Coming in to campus on another day was hard at times. It was also hard to just come out and say, "Hi! Would you like to be in a study group for this class?" - but once I got into the habit of it, it wasn't as hard as the first time.

CHOOSING A GOOD TIME TO HAVE A STUDY MEETING
Everyone got together after class to decide when our study group would meet. Some people wanted to have the study group meet after class. Some wanted to meet before class (that was my idea). Others thought meeting an extra time before a test of quiz would be helpful. We decided to meet before class every week or two. This would not require an extra commute to school, and it was handy to meet at an area in the same building.

DIVIDING UP THE WORK
We had some hard tests and quizzes to prepare for; so we divided the work in to sections. One person covered one subject, and the others did others. We made quiz cards up and brought them to the study group meeting. We then quizzed each other, using the cards. This helped a lot to focus in on what we did and didn't know - and helped each of us know what we needed to study the most. Plus, making the cards helped us learn the material. We also helped each other by reminding each other about assignments and answered each other's questions.

MAKING THE MEETINGS
Sometimes, work or family responsibilities interfered with meetings, and some people could not come to one or more meetings. But usually, we still had enough people there to make each study group worthwhile.

SOME PEOPLE SAID NO
When I asked people around me in class if they wanted to be in a study group, some people just said no. I didn't let this bother me. Even if only 2 or 3 people would be interested, it still was a big enough group. The biggest group we had was about 6 people.

WHAT MY STUDY GROUPS ACCOMPLISHED
I truly believe that having a study group for class (especially a difficult class) made a huge difference in my grade. I think it helped at least one grade mark. Somehow talking with others and hearing what they thought would be on the test really made me remember facts a lot better than just trying to cram them in on my own.

AN ADDED BENEFIT TO STUDY GROUPS
Also, I believe that I really connected better with other students by being in a study group with them. We would sometimes talk about other things besides class, and that made the study groups a lot more fun. Most of the people in each group were a lot younger, but when we had the time (at study group time) to get to know each other, it also made going to class and studying a lot more fun. I now had people I actually KNEW in class with me. And today I still have some of the students who were in my study groups in my friends list in Facebook. I feel like I really made friends this way.

So... I would definitely recommend trying this if you are taking a face-to-face class. In an online class, it also would not hurt. You could get together online before or after class, or choose to call each other on the phone to touch base. I think it would definitely help.

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

My home welcomes me!

night_porch
Originally uploaded by betsyanne.

Coming home...

It takes a lot of support from loved ones in order to go back to school or start a new enterprise. Thank goodness for my family. They were always so supportive of me, no matter what.

A question to ask all non-traditional students - do you think that non-traditional students (mostly older students) face more hardships when they get a job after being back at school? I think there are some that do.

Why is this so? I don't know. People may expect more of older people. Perhaps some people feel that older people are "different," and don't think the same way as younger people do. Also, I wonder if older people are expected to perform at a higher level than younger people - with the same amount of experience? I don't know. Many reasons could factor in.

I do know that in about ten years from now there will be many more students and workers that are older, so current attitudes will have to change a lot - from necessity. There simply will not be enough younger workers to fill all the needed job spots in the future.

And I think it's very true that older people have a lot to offer - certainly a great work ethic and responsibility can be assets - as well as a wealth of experience in other fields.

One thing is for sure - non-traditional students are a growing portion of the population. And many are going back to school - record numbers of them. I think that going back to school is something that everyone should do at least once - if not to get more job skills, to explore things that people love - hobbies - new things!

Tonight I am thinking about my support system. I am lucky to have such a great one. I realize that not everyone does have a support system at all, and I am grateful for mine.

Juggling work, school, and responsibilities

Somebody said something very true on the WKU Non-Traditional Students group the other day.

They said that sometimes a person has to let their family help him or her. A person can't possibly be going to school and still have time to do everything he or she used to do before going back to school. They just can't. The family has to step up and help. So it's important that your family is supportive of you in this huge step.

Going back to school changes things. You will be busy with homework a LOT, and simply not available to do things you did before in the same way. Something has to give --- you won't be such a perfectionist at cleaning, for instance, UNLESS somebody in your family gives you a hand, if you usually do that job. This goes for lots of jobs in a family. You may have always been there to help with certain things, but the time element just won't let you anymore.

Talk to your children and spouse, the writer suggested, and get them to take over things you used to handle. They need to do this so that YOU can concentrate on school. It's the only way. Otherwise, if you try to keep up with everything in the same way you did before school came along, you are facing an impossible task. Nobody wants to face that.

It was good advice.

Non-traditional students and families

I think more and more teachers are realizing how hard it can be to go back to school and take care of a family at the same time. I had two classes in which people actually took their children to class. I go back and forth about this in my mind. One: people sometimes have emergencies and must put their children's needs and safety first. Two: sometimes there is not physical room in the class for children. Three: sometimes people won't really say what is really on their mind remembering that there are children in class.

Plus, being there MUST be so boring for them (the children forced to attend class with Mom or Dad.) Though it's true Mom or Dad brings homework or coloring books, those activities pale after the first hour of a 2 1/2 hour class.

Perhaps in the future students of all ages will know that they can both go to school AND take care of their children. Some colleges have daycares on campus. Others (like Western) have an office that directs parents to daycares around town.

What is the solution? I know that child care can be a problem, whether a person has to be at school in a class, or is working at a "regular" job. Any thoughts out there?