5 Tips for Nontrads during the Covid-19 crisis, FAFSA link, and more.

A few (5) Tips for Nontraditional Students during the Covid-19 Crisis.

As we are in the midst of the Pandemic, it is more critical than ever to support all nontraditional students as they go back to school. Many are online (which I have tried personally...).

Please feel free to comment at the end of the blog. Are YOU going back to school? Are you going to try a face-to-face class? I wonder what they will look like. Of course, online classes are still available, thank goodness.

What changes has the Pandemic made in your school life? I hope you can continue. If you choose to take a break, it is VERY understandable.

What can you do to stay motivated, no matter what the Coronavirus situation has changed things for you?

I have some ideas that might help.

1. Research HOW you can keep attending school. It is possible you might be able to continue, online or otherwise. See the FAFSA Student Aid site, contact your school, and think about how to make it happen, even if it is only part-time for now. OR you can take a break, if possible.

2. Find ways to de-stress, and have time ALSO just for you. Some ideas here could include yoga, walking, meditation, and more. You may want to consider Tele-Health for your medical AND mental health needs.

3. Take care of your health in other ways. For instance, wear a mask in public, and consider having your groceries delivered. If you are working and cannot afford not to, make sure you are protected and safe at work. Do you need a job change? Carefully consider that, too.

4. Reach out to your friends and family members online and (safely) in person. Stay connected!

5. Make lists (something I find very helpful!). Prioritize things. Make choices. I know, this is easier said than done. I have found this helpful in the past.

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People are online, helping each other stay in school, and applying for needed loans and grants. You can connect with them.

Don't forget to apply for your FAFSA, if you are just starting out.

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And remember, this, too, shall pass. Did you know this was a Persian adage? I didn't until now. I like it.

Betsyanne

A couple of other helpful articles:
10 Tips for Success as a Nontraditional Student
Making Time for your Favorite Things

Search in the Search Box to find more.

Nontraditional students come in many varieties, and the group is growing. Are you one?

A nontraditional student used to be a rarity. But no longer.

Photo credit: Michaelcardus on Flickr.

In a March 2012 article, Steven Bell, a librarian at Temple University, states that "Thirty-eight percent of those enrolled in higher education are over the age of 25 and 25 percent are over the age of 30. The share of all students who are over age 25 is projected to increase another twenty-three percent by 2019."

The number of non-traditional undergraduates is rising for many reasons. 

I believe those reasons include wanting to get a better job, raise family income, and change careers. Some nontraditional students have lost their jobs due to downsizing or the economy and are training for a second, or even third career.

More and more schools are catering to nontraditional students, who are often older and going back to school after a break. I have seen Nontraditional Student clubs, special advising, and more choices in class times in the last five years or so, and I believe this trend will gain traction in the years to come.

Schools are offering more financial aid for older students too. And younger students are generally starting to be more accepting of older students.

As the numbers of nontraditional students goes up, I believe that younger students will welcome them more and more into groups and clubs, which will increase retention for these students who need it the most.

I also believe that more online and face-to-face classes will be offered at more times all across the country, helping many nontraditional students with time constraints.

More dedicated advisors just for nontraditional students, more generalized majors, more financial help, and a more flexible attitude towards child care and assistance in making up classes will be prevalent in the future.

What thoughts do you have on being a nontraditional student today or helping them? Leave a comment today.

Thanks,

-Betsyanne
Former Nontraditional Student in Education at WKU
The Garden Spot, Kentucky

Sources:

Nontraditional Students are the New Majority

Financial Aid for Older and Nontraditional Students at the FinAid site

University using online classes, virtual library to cater to 'non-traditional' students

And here are more of my nontraditional student links:

The Nontrad site and blog

Join Nontrads on Facebook

Nontrads on Yahoo, and

Nontrads on Twitter

College now and then - ten differences I noticed as a nontraditional student

Did you notice changes in your college classes and your school the second time around? 

Xavier college students by Editor B on Flickr

Some nontraditional students are going back to school and noticing some major changes. That is, besides the obvious age differences.

Here are some things I noticed. Did you too?

1. Classes were at times more informal. People are sometimes encouraged to speak out, sometimes not though. There is sometimes group work too.

2. A big obvious change for me was the addition of online classes. I talk about this in another posting, Online vs. Face-to-Face classes: which is better? 
I took both kinds of classes when I went back to school. One of the online classes had a "meet the class" session a couple of times where people actually met face to face. But the rest of the class was online.

3. There are now online recommendation sites for checking out classes BEFORE you take them. You can find out what other students have said about your professors. One I used was PickaProf (now bought by MyEdu) and another was Rate My Professors.com. (One or more of these have changed ownership and have different names now too...)

4. Some books had CD's with them and online help sites. Now some books are totally digital and you can bring them with you, which helps your backpack not be as heavy.

5. People were using backpacks a lot. Which I liked. I could carry more. Some people had rolling backpacks, mostly fellow nontrads.

6. Although study groups have been around a long time, I made some with the younger students, and they were a big success. So that was way different from when I first went to school and tried to do everything alone, even study for the hardest classes. You can find out more about making a study group here at Study Groups for Nontraditional Students.

7. Eating at school was much more varied. When I was first there, we had lots of choices, but they were mainly the cafeteria-style buffet type. I did like them. WKU had great cooks. But now, there are more Bistro-type choices, pizza, salad bars, and more healthy foods too. I did miss the buffet (which had veggies too) but the new food choices were also good. I got used to them pretty quick.

8. It was still a challenge to get from class to class sometimes. WKU has classes all the way UP the hill, and has others all the way DOWN the hill. But also on the good side, they now have student buses that you can take. And that helps sometimes.

9. It used to be that many dorm residents went home on the weekends. It seemed to me that not as many did, judging by the number of cars that were still there on the weekends.

10. I noticed more when other students didn't seem to care or do their work - - or (more often) didn't even log in for online classes. I wondered what their story was. I was definitely more motivated this time around for sure, and didn't count myself among the ones who did not attend class or turned in late assignments. I figured I needed every Brownie Point I could get.

What changes have you noticed, nontraditional students? Have you been able to rent a textbook, for instance?

-Betsyanne
Former Nontraditional Student
in Education, WKU

And here are some more Nontrad links:
The Nontrad site and blog

Join Nontrads on Facebook

Nontrads on Yahoo, and

Nontrads on Twitter

Computers - and Nontraditional Students

Learning to be comfortable with computers
Some nontraditional students already know a lot about computers. Some don't. For the ones that do not, there are some places online you can go to get help learning what you need to know about computers.

One place is the Technology Page at the Nontrads site. This page explains a little about programs used in college, and gives some advice to nontraditional students who are new to computing or who want to learn more about it.

Another good place to learn about computers is the Betsyanne Seniors Page. Check out the very left side for free lessons on the AARP site to help nontraditional students get familiar with programs like Microsoft Word.

How your school can help

Your school may already offer computer courses for beginners. If you are a nontraditional student, make sure to sign up for these courses. They can help you a lot by helping you brush up on your typing and presenting the basics of programs used at the school.

You will want to learn all the basics of computing so that your school experience will be easier. Programs available today help you write reports, type out your classroom notes, communicate with class members, and keep your school records current.

Online classes

Online classes can be very convenient for nontraditional students. If you are in an online course, make sure you touch base with the school or your professor to make sure that you understand how to log on to your class web area in order to keep up with assignments and interact with your class as well.

Ask your advisor before school starts what assistance the college has for nontraditional students who need to learn about computers. They may have a required class you take when you begin.

Also, allow at least an extra week or even a month before you start classes in order to familiarize yourself with the programs you need for class - and to make sure that they are compatible with your computer.

Some online courses use a program called Blackboard. Every student has his or her account here, and the program helps each student keep track of his or her grades, too.

If you decide to use the computers at your school, you will need to find out how to access the computer labs, the hours each are open, and how to create your student account. Often, student helpers are available at each computer lab to help you.

For computer newbies

Are you completely new to computers? If you already know how to type, you will definitely be a step ahead. But you probably will want to take a beginning computer class a semester before you are in the midst of your college experience. You won't regret it.

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Here are some more websites I found today that look very helpful to the nontraditional student who is not as familiar with computers as they would like to be:

AARP Free computer lessons - this is the very best basic course I have seen.

Microsoft Tutorials - learn access, databases, PowerPoint, more.

More Online tutorials

SeniorNet free computer courses - learn how to change accessability options to make the type bigger on your computer, more.

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

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.

Online classes and relationships

Computer classes...
Originally uploaded by betsyanne.

On-line classes (or distance classes) vs. in-class classes:

It is really fun to take on-line classes sometimes. It's also true what they say, though - online classes can be even harder than "regular" classes where you are actually sitting in a class. When I took online classes, that's how it seemed to me. Not that it's impossible, only harder.

One of the younger students didn't keep up with one of the online classes I took. It was sad, too, because it was a writing class and the person was really talented. The ones (like me!) who just kept shloggin along did OK.

I did enjoy getting to know people face-to-face. It made going back to school more fun. You do get to know people sometimes in online classes. Some teachers like to meet for the first time in person, and then have the rest online. Some professors are doing some classes online, and some not. The day classes are mostly traditional. I think there is room for both. If a person MUST only take online classes, he or she must know that they take a lot of time, and he or she must check online often for assignments, and PLAN AHEAD.

Your Calendar
It's so important to have a calendar and mark out your personal deadlines there. You can take an assignment and break it up in to smaller pieces. That makes it SO much easier when it's crunch time and the assignment, paper, or project is all of a sudden due the next week. Don't set yourself up for high blood pressure or an all-nighter. The assignment calendar helps SO much. It has saved me many a time.