Beacon of Hope

Abstract

Many Americans dream of completing a college degree, positively influencing wages and economic mobility. The number of students entering college or returning to college later in life is growing. Up to 75% of university enrollments are comprised of students in one or more of the following circumstances: 25 years old or older, attend school part-time, work full-time, parents. These students, described in the literature as non-traditional or post-traditional students, have different needs from traditionally-aged students. The award-winning Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences (BAAS) program, in Texas State University's Department of Occupational, Workforce, and Leadership Studies (OWLS), provides a pathway for post-traditional students to earn a college degree. This article features the voices of post-traditional students and discusses background information as context. The work of Malcolm Knowles and his ideas about andragogy serve as a framework for analyzing the BAAS program as well as implications and future.