Can the non-traditional student return to college to get their undergraduate/graduate education and be a success at it? This question is being raised in more minds across the world than ever before. Will a student over the age of 25 with family responsibilities be able to rise above the conflicts of life and complete this education? Will they be able to adjust and "fit in" to the college life style? How will their families learn to adjust and adapt to the new demands on the students lives? Is it really a necessity for these students to be going back after all this time? There are various types of people with many reasons for returning to complete their educations.
Ken Troccoli's morning routine wasn't like most men of his age. He rose in the morning to defrost breast milk, prepare his toddler's breakfast and lunch for preschool and then balanced volunteering for that school with going to Georgetown University Law Center. He had to learn to multi task because his wife had to take a full time job for him to go back to school.
Ken is not alone. Parents like Ken are becoming more common across campuses across the country. Rochelle Daniel of Maryland University College is pursuing a master's degree in management while working full time and raising her 5 year old. Jean Betz puts her two children on the school bus and then heads to the University of Maryland at Collage Park to take philosophy classes. Even though she's trained as a lawyer, she finds taking undergraduate courses stimulating. Tighter job markets with the higher unemployment rates is making it more necessary for adults to return to school for a higher education. In other cases, men and women alike just want to better themselves and keep their brains active. .
Officials at several two and four year colleges and graduate schools say that parents with children at home make up a large percentage of their students.