<p>As far as I know Williams College don't.</p>
<p>Yes, Williams does. Not in large numbers, but I know of several nontraditional Williams alums.</p>
<p>I think Smith has a program specifically targeted at this type of student.</p>
<p>Mt. Holyoke and Goucher do too. And, there are others out there. I would draw up a list of schools you would potentially be interested in and then contact them individually to ask for more information.</p>
<p>I don't get it...why wouldn't they??</p>
<p>Fei, I think they would welcome adult students, it is just that most adults have many good reasons for looking at these schools and going elsewhere. For example, a lot of the LAC experience is the residential experience - most adults would not want to live a dorm with a bunch of 18 year olds. Most adults have to work, small LACs are geared to full time students, they don't have the range of night and afternoon classes adults often need. Credit hour for credit hour, many LACs are more expensive.</p>
<p>Some LACs in our area do have a number of adult students, but most of them are working on masters' courses (not strictly a college, the, huh?) or are taking "niche" programs like nursing CEUs or certain computer certifications - these type programs are a financial boost for the school</p>
<p>Wheaton (Mass.) has had a special program for them for over 25 years....</p>
<p>I think an adult student would have a problem fitting into a residential LAC with a bunch of 18-20 year olds who have just gotten their first freedom and first taste of alcohol. It would probably feel like spending time with a bunch of kids, not very fun.</p>
<p>Also, if you work full time, LAC's usually don't have specially scheduled night or weekend classes like large universities do.</p>
<p>carolyn, could you please tell me the list of schools you knew? Thank you very much.</p>
<p>I don't have a specific list --- just know that the schools already mentioned welcome adult students. What I was suggesting is that you draw up your OWN list of schools that interest you and then contact their admissions offices directly to get more information about any programs to support returning students. It will take a bit of research on your part but I think you will find many schools more open to this than you may think.</p>
<p>Thank you carolyn!</p>
<p>Smith has a special program for adult women.</p>
<p>A lot of women's colleges seem to have programs for non-traditionally aged students...Smith has the Ada Comstock program, Mt Holyoke has the Francis Perkins program, Wellesley has the Davis Scholars program, Meredith College (in NC) has the 23+ program, and Converse College (SC) has the Converse II program.</p>
<p>But is it harder to get financial aid for those programs?</p>
<p>My alma mater got a large donation that enabled them to cut tuition in half for every non-traditional age woman who enrolled. It's just one example of a large number of programs encouraging older students to pursue a college education. I don't believe that LACs "discourage" them. I think some posters are right about LAC not seeming like a great fit at first blush, because of the residential setting, scheduling of classes, and so forth, but some LAC have tried to work around these issues.</p>
<p>I have heard faculty say they really value the perspectives of adult students, and appreciate the work ethic they bring.</p>
<p>I knew there were some adult students in swarthmore college. But I can not find anything about the recruitment of adults on their official website.</p>
<p>"But is it harder to get financial aid for those programs?"</p>
<p>85% of the Adas at Smith receive financial aid (and there are 230 of them.)</p>
<p>But Smith requires some college credit, right? What if one didn't receive any credits?</p>
<p>I don't know about all small LACs, but my friend's father attended a small LAC for his MD when he was 40, and liked the experience (besides the fact that he first shared a house with 3 other 19 year olds, and they had parties all the time).</p>
<p>I think Master's Degree is very different from Bachelor's.</p>
<p>Right-there - You probably will NOT find anything about the recruitment of adults on most LAC web sites. If I were you, I'd take the direct approach and either call or email the admissions counselor for your area and ask "How many older students do you have on campus? What sort of financial aid is available for them? How are they treated in admissions? How are they treated by faculty and other students? Is housing available?"
You'll get a good idea of whether a school is right for you this way.</p>