How To Remove Completion Barriers For Non-Traditional Students

Overview Nontraditional students now make up 70 percent or more of our undergraduate population. Statistics tell us that nontraditional students are less likely than traditional full-time students to persist and complete degree programs. Conventional engagement strategies do not fit with this non-homogeneous group, as they are challenged with additional at-risk factors such as full-time employment, childcare responsibilities, and low self-esteem in collegiate affairs. Whether situational, dispositional, or institutional, barriers for nontraditional students pose a great challenge for persistence and completion, and for the colleges adapting and changing to meet their needs. There is no doubt that colleges need to become more responsive to meeting the needs of students who do not fit the outdated formula for attending college full-time during the day. Efforts need to be made to provide equitable services and opportunities for goal completion. Colleges must leverage and expand