Students your age may include graduate students.
We were recently in Minn/St. Paul looking at another university and I absolutely fell in love with St. Paul. I was completely taken by surprise at how much I loved it.
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I read neuropsych reports frequently and I find the type you’d get from a university hospital are often “cut and paste” (as in sometimes they forget to change the name or a key feature of the person being tested) or done by an intern with oversite by a fellow. That’s not to say some of them aren’t great, but not consistently. Many have the same general recommendations for a specific diagnosis.
I prefer reports that are very specific and really get to “who the learner is”. That may not matter as much if it is being used in a college setting as they tend to offer rather generic accommodations. If you are just looking for a diagnosis and general recommendations, you should be fine.
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Those are all great points. I am most interested in schools that offer special housing for non-traditional students but it doesn’t seem like there are a lot. (But some do exist!)
I feel like I’m pretty decent at setting boundaries but I’d prefer dealing with my university in regards to housing versus an unknown landlord. I don’t need housing during breaks either.
Thank you!
There may be some housing arrangements that group nontraditional students with graduate students. Although you are probably not interested in UCB and probably would not be admitted with a 3.3 college GPA, the cooperative housing there is an example where some houses are open only to graduate and re-entry (age 25+) students.
If such exist at colleges that you are interested in, you may want to consider whether that is of interest to you.
I can’t thank you enough! @compmom
That must have been a lot of hard work navigating your children’s needs, let alone the college application process! That really is amazing. Thank you for your positivity and encouragement. I truly appreciate it 
Also, I’d love for you to PM me!
I’ll take my account off of private while this post is active. I think I can also get some information regarding resources in my area without worrying about revealing too much information publicly.
Edited: I suck at technology 
It seems like my settings should allow PMs now?! Please let me know if you can’t reach me. If so, then I’ll reach out to tech support. Thank you!
If someone is reading this, I just ask that you please not cross reference my information. Posts can not be edited (after 15 mins) or deleted on CC and I have an ex who tends to track my location. College calendars are easily accessible online and I don’t want to reveal where I’ll be living if I can help it. Thank you! I really appreciate it!
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I’m so sorry I didn’t respond to you! Thank you so much! That is really useful advice.
I’m trying to use as many resources as I can in order to find these hidden gems. I want to remain realistic but I know there are schools out there that offer this kind of housing. I just have to find them!
I’ve never heard of private dorms but that seems like a great fit for me! I’ll be on the lookout as that may be better than most of the housing offerings available to non-trad students 
Thank you so much!
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Community is very important for me and I feel that it is an integral factor in keeping my life balanced. I experienced a lot of the “head down and hustle” type culture at my community college and I find it depressing.
I’m comfortable revealing that I’m in my late 20s but I have quite a few friends in the 40-70s range. I don’t think that it’s unrealistic to want a peer group to study with and grow close to. I feel that it’s an important part in defining how well a potential college aligns with my educational goals.
Unfortunately, there is no way I’d be able to be full pay at any of these schools without the college fund left by my grandparents. I do think that I need to respect what they left behind and make long term investments in my education. I am absolutely open to paying out of pocket for the evaluation. I’d have to make it work but it is possible!
Please PM me if possible! I should be able to receive messages now and I really appreciate your offer to provide me with local recommendations.
Thank you so very much!!
Thank you! I really appreciate your unique perspective. I’m not familiar with the testing process at all. You made some important points and I’ll discuss my goals with my therapist. I need to discuss my expectations and what I’d like to use my test results for. The neuropsych evaluation was suggested by my therapist before I decided to continue my education, so I need to pay attention to that.
Thank you so much 
Thank you @ucbalumnus
I will look into co-operative housing!
These are college where there was at least 1 philosophy major in the most recent grade that had at least 8% of students age 25+ (and some up to 33%). There were two schools that had a larger percentage of philosophy grads for their size, but less than the 8%, but I put them on the list in case you decide the size of the philosophy department (relatively speaking) is more important than the percentage of non-traditional students. Also, I’ve left such a variety of schools because I don’t know how many of the non-traditional students are full-time vs part-time, or whether a university may be including numbers of students who are hybrid or online learners, etc.
McDaniel had the largest number of philosophy grads but the lowest number of 25+ students. It is known for having lots of support services for its students, however.
If I were in your shoes I’d probably start off by looking at Webster and U. of Illinois – Springfield first, followed by the Minnesota universities (there are a lot that seem to have better than most numbers of 25+ students, so they may have additional consortium/community possibilities there).
The pattern is the university name (state, if not obvious), approximate # of undergrads, percentage of undergrads age 25+, # of philosophy grads in the most recent year. I bolded the # of majors if it was 3+. ETA: I also bolded the percentages that had 15+% of undergrads as 25+.
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Augsburg (MN): 2400 undergrads, 14%, 1
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Bethel (MN): 2600 undergrads, 11%, 3
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Eastern (PA ): 1700 undergrads, 33%, 2
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Elizabethtown (PA ): 1700 undergrads, 9%, 2
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Jacksonville (FL): 2600 undergrads, 16%, 1
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Hamline (MN): 1800 undergrads, 5%, 6
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Manhattanville (NY): 1300 undergrads, 11%, 5
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Marymount (VA): 2200 undergrads, 15%, 1
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McDaniel (MD): 1800 undergrads, 2%, 12
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Moravian (PA ): 1900 undergrads, 8%, 2
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Niagara (NY): 2800 undergrads, 12%, 2
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Ohio Dominican: 900 undergrads, 13%, 2
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Simpson (IA): 1200 undergrads, 10%, 3
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Spring Arbor (MI): 1200 undergrads, 22%, 2
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St Catherine (MN): 2600 undergrads, 32%, 1
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St Francis (NY): 2400 undergrads, 11%, 1
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U. of Detroit Mercy (MI): 2900 undergrads, 9%, 2
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U. of Dubuque (IA): 1600 undergrads, 18%, 2
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U. of Illinois – Springfield: 2500 undergrads, 34%, 4
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Utica (NY): 3k undergrads, 24%, 1
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Viterbo (WI): 1700 undergrads, 25%, 1
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Wagner (NY): 1600 undergrads, 8%, 3
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Webster (MO): 2300 undergrads, 25%, 5
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@CircleTriangleSq your public profile is still hidden.
Aside from the programs at women’s colleges, I think most older students are working or have families and want the degree to advance in careers and income. Not everyone of course. But philosophy is harder to find, apparently, in degree completion programs. Also, many degree completion programs are online, and many offer part-time programs.
The typical, immersive, residential college experience may seem appealing to you but not sure it is the answer, unless you can find a program like Ada Comstock where you live in a dorm with other non-traditional students. Again, I suggest asking Smith for ideas.
The main concern of selective colleges would be whether you could do the work. If you have an evaluation, get accommodations and take a few classes and do really well, perhaps a selective school might be possible. I don’t want to give false hope, but it would be nice if you could be in a challenging but supportive environment.
Otherwise, you could find off campus housing with grad students or people who are working, who have the level of maturity you might want. Certainly some college students are serious and mature and you might find friends in the dorm, but overall I think off campus might be best. You can basically replicate Ada Comstock, perhaps, by having like-minded off campus roommates.
In that sense, I would prioritize schools with active and lively philosophy departments - if you are sure that is what you want to major in.
It is difficult moving by yourself to a new place, and entering a college community where your age and experience may contribute to social isolation. I did this myself in my mid-20’s. I strongly recommend joining an apartment household near campus with compatible roommates.
I just ran into this: Newsletter (naspa.org)
For you, I think social isolation may be the biggest issue, and you will also need academic support, possibly through the Accessible Education office.
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I forgot to say how amazing the post by @AustenNut is 
Take a look at BU’s online degree completion program, which I find interesting in its depth and breadth. You could live in Boston or Cambridge or Brookline with roommates or, since it is online, anywhere you like.
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Keep your account private. Anyone can generate a PM to you from within their own account, by going to the envelope icon (PMs) from their account avatar and entering your CC handle.
Many of the schools on austennut’s list could work, I really like UI Springfield
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Which college is best for you depends in large part on why you are doing this. To get a degree? To return to your current work at a higher level, or change fields entirely? To pursue grad school? To relocate to a different area? Many people do end up getting jobs and settling in the region they attended school, so that might be a consideration. Are you interested in career services at the new school, or won’t that matter?
Wow! I can’t thank you enough. Thank you for taking the time to search for and organize this information. It’s extremely helpful and I truly appreciate it 
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Those are all extremely important points. I will definitely reach out to Ada Comstock. They have such an amazing looking program but I’m pretty sure they would be way too rigorous. Even if I somehow managed to get accepted. I will still reach out and see if they can offer some advice in finding similar programs!
I love that you’ve had a similar experience and still got your degree. The fact that you’ve had firsthand experience being a non-traditional student means you have a firm understanding of some of the challenges I’ll be facing. That is such an invaluable perspective.
Apparently, private dorms exist and they seem like an amazing fit for me. So I definitely agree that I can create my own community by looking for housing with older students and graduate students off campus! That’s a fantastic suggestion
Thank you so much
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Thank you @Mwfan1921
That’s perfect! Thank you so much because I couldn’t figure it out 
I’ll leave my profile on private, but if anyone would like to PM me please do! It should work
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I definitely need to take a good look at my long term plans. I had enough education for my current career and wouldn’t have considered pursuing a bachelor’s if it weren’t for my college fund. I actually plan to return to that field after I graduate.
Having the opportunity to leave home and pursue my passion is such a huge privilege. I want to get the best possible experience I can because of this opportunity.
My main focus is to improve my critical thinking and writing skills while studying something I love. I’m not sure if I’ll want to pursue more education after my bachelor’s but I’m not counting it out.
Career resources are definitely a plus but they aren’t my main focus.
Thank you for raising such important questions!
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The good news is that you can pursue such an intellectual sabbatical almost anywhere. The less good news is that you will find few peers doing so, particularly at the current costs. Good luck.