Normally HS students have advisors and counselers to help them, adult students usually have issues regarding outdated education (for example, when I was in HS the highest I could get was algebra/trig, and now I hear people do Calc in HS!)
Also, it would be good to discuss things like housing, grants, JCs and CCs, GED, ACT, job expierence and volunteer work for credit, vocational education and transferring, coping with school/job/family, finding the elusive federal aid and grants-yes, if you take each issue they could be covered perhaps in every forum, but it makes information hard to obtain and keep track of, since 99% of the site is geared to students fresh out of HS.
The resources for adults returning to school are out there, but not as comprehensive as this site could make it.
I think both to be honest… it could focus on not only applying and having to handle things yourself, such as college searches/financing/etc but also dealing with work and a family, and affording things, and other hidden university tools, such as those that provide child care.
This reminds me of a recent thread “Is CC any use after high school?” It’s called CC for a reason. Although, I think we’ll have a new generation of users who have been here for high school, college, and grad school before too long.
I was talking about the fact you misspelled delete. There is a rule against talking about moderator actions but T-chick is still learning that from today. But we are making reference to talking about talking about moderator actions.
When I said “Or it’s off topic” I didn’t mean in it to suggest they’re would be evil mod deletions of such topics, but that “In my day” would be required as tradition.
JCampbell stated that there are resources out there for the non-trad students, but I have yet to find them. I have read a few websites that basically just try to offer compassionate advice; basically telling you not to feel like a loser, “It’s okay, many adults go back to school.” Or the few boards that are designed for returning mothers. I am not a mother, nor a loser. Nor do I have a career that I need to work around.
I am the non-traditional non-traditional student; which makes me a traditional student in every sense of the word. I want to attend college during the day. I want to participate in college activities, clubs, and other campus-related events (no, I am not trying relive some by-gone glory days). I don’t want to be in some sort of excelerated learning program for adults. I don’t want to take courses or be forced into a program for adults (even though trad students are adults…sort of ). The only thing that makes me a non-trad student is my age and some stupid rule set forth by who knows for reasons that seem to be unknown and don’t really make any sense.
It is frustrating for someone my age. There is almost no merit-based scholarships available. In fact, there is not much of any sort of scholarships available for someone my age which is kind of funny because I bust my behind and have proved myself ten-fold and I am more dedicated now to college then most 18 year olds (presumably, at least I got all of my party years out of my system and can now actually focus on my school work). But, I apply for scholarships and they just shrug, “Sorry, but you are a decade to old.” And the few that are available for someone my age are reserved for single parents, women who had to drop out of college the first time around to raise a kid, minorities, or veterans.
Seriously, what the heck?
Oh, and by the way; many of you will probably be back on this site ten years from now when you realize that it wasn’t a good idea to drop out (happens all the time) or that you shouldn’t have majored in _________ and now want a career change, but need to return to college to accomplish that (this happens a lot more then you think–how many eighteen year olds really know what they want to do with their lives?).
So yeah, a sub-forum for us oldies would be nice. There is a parents section, why not one for us?
baracuta_jones, we’re in the same boat with the same predicaments.
I would love to see a forum on here for the 25+ crowd. We’re alienated enough out in the real world, it would be nice to have somewhere to congregate on here. =)
Oh, me too! I’m the parent of a college sophomore, a high school junior, AND I’m in the process of returning to school myself. I’m a full time student this semester for the first time in almost 20 years. I have financial aid issues I sometimes want to talk about, questions about juggling things, grad school questions (when I get there) – all sorts of things that I’d post to a Adults Returning to College forum.
I am an adult student at age 22 working full time and taking online college courses. It would be nice to have a forum for those a bit older like 21-28.
I think an adult student forum would be awesome! My mom is in her 40s and a single parent of two. She started going to college when she was younger, then she met my dad and decided to put him through college first, then come back for college herself. Needless to say, twenty years later she still hasn’t gone back yet. Now that her youngest daughter (me) is soon to enter college, she wants to try to go back and get her degree. The problem is, she doesn’t know anything about how she can go back (financial aid possibilities, admission, etc). An adult student forum would help her return to college and realize that she’s not the only one who wants to go to college at a not-so usual age as most.
Sorry.