Heading Back Number of non-traditional students in college rising

by Terry Cipollini staff writer

Many of the student faces found on a college campus are not necessarily fresh out of high school. More and more, the typical college student is getting older. These non-traditional or adult students are filling classrooms all over the country.

The student population consists of 758 adults. "I remember about seven years ago, hearing that 50 percent of college campuses would be adult students," Karen Karlsen, assistant registrar said, Many motivating factors have created this change. Some students are in college to get a promotion or just maintain their current position. Other students have experienced life changes, such as divorce, and need to better their employment possibilities. Many more have decided they want a career change.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics in 1973, non-traditional students made up 12 percent of the college population. In 1997, that number rose to 42 percent. Cabrini is no different. Financially, there has been a great deal of support for many adults to return to college. A lot of employers have included tuition reimbursement as part of the employee benefit package. In 1997, President Clinton signed the Taxpayer Relief Act , which provides tax credits for tuition expenses.

The younger student older student mix can have both positive and negative effects on the flow in the classroom. "Overall Cabrini does a good job working to educate older students," said Alynn Capoferri, junior. Capoferri is a full-time undergraduate in Special Education and

Elementary Education, she is also an adult student. "Sometimes I feel out of place, like I take the work more seriously, but I like the variety of viewpoints," Capoferri said. Liz Kyle, junior and sports science major is a traditional college student. "I don't think anything about seeing adults in the classroom. They're here to learn just like the rest of us," Kyle said. "Sometimes they have more of an insight on a subject matter, and sometimes we do. We all learn from each other."