Why adults pursuing career growth or personal interests are the 'new
majority' student
[February 23, 2026] By
CHEYANNE MUMPHREY
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Interested in starting a business, learning
about artificial intelligence or exploring a new hobby? There's a class
for that.
Millions of U.S. adults enroll in credit and non-credit college courses
to earn professional certificates, learn new skills or to pursue
academic degrees. Some older students are seeking career advancement,
higher pay and job security, while others want to explore their personal
interests or try new things.
“They might have kids, they might be working full-time, they might be
older non-traditional students," said Eric Deschamps, the director of
continuing education at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff,
Arizona. But returning to school "opens doors to education for students
that might not have those doors open to them otherwise.”
Older students, many of whom bring years of work and life experience to
their studies, often are juggling courses with full-time jobs,
caregiving and other family responsibilities. It is a challenging
balancing act but can also sharpen priorities and provide a sense of
fulfillment.
Here's what experts have to say about returning to school, what to
consider beforehand and how to balance coursework with work and personal
commitments.
Why more people want to continue learning
UCLA Extension, the continuing education division of the University of
California, Los Angeles, offers more than 90 certificate and
specialization programs, from interior design, early childhood education
and accounting to photography, paralegal studies and music production.
Individual courses cover a wide range of topics, including retirement
planning, writing novels, the business of athletes and artists, and the
ancient Japanese art of ikebana, or flower arranging.
About 33,500 students — nearly half of them older than 35 — were
enrolled during the last academic year. UCLA reported a full-time
enrollment of about 32,600 degree-seeking undergraduate students during
the same period.
“I prefer calling our (adult) learners not only continuous, but the new
majority student. These are learners who tend to already be employed,
often supporting a family, looking for up-skilling or sometimes a career
change,” Traci Fordham, UCLA's interim associate dean for academic
programs and learning innovation, said.
Higher education experts say some adults take classes for professional
development as economic concerns, technological advances and other
workforce changes create a sense of job insecurity.
“A great example of that is artificial intelligence. These new
technologies are coming out pretty quickly and for folks that got a
degree, even just 5 or 10 years ago, their knowledge might be a little
bit outdated,” Deschamps said.
What to ask yourself before returning to school
Adults interested in becoming students again may want to assess their
time and budgets, and weigh the potential benefits and consequences,
including the financial impact, the potential for burnout and rewards of
education that may take a while materialize, academic advisors say.
Deschamps suggests asking where you want to be in 5 or 10 years and how
the training and knowledge received through an additional class or
certificate can help get you there. For example, if you want to start a
microbrewery, learning to brew your own beer or launching a business
will help. If a promotion or career change is the goal, training for a
new job, refreshing skills or understanding a different industry may
help show you are qualified.
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In this April 23, 2007 file photo, Nola Ochs listens to a
lecture during a class at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kan.
(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
 Schools like UCLA and Northern
Arizona University are working to make continuing education courses
accessible by keeping the cost low in comparison to degree-track
classes and offering financial assistance. A variety of learning
environments usually are offered — in-person and online classes,
accelerated and self-paced instruction — to help adults integrate
schoolwork with their home and work lives.
Katie Swavely, assistant director for academic advising and student
success at UCLA, started at community college before transferring to
UCLA to study anthropology. She said it took her 10 years after
graduating to go back for her master's degree in counseling with a
focus on academic advising. Swavely completed that degree in 2020
and credits access to the program through employer-sponsored tuition
assistance from her job at the time.
“I felt like in so many ways I didn’t really know who I was or what
I wanted to do other than just pay the bills and survive,” said
Swavely, who is married and has two children. “It was hard. And I
thought about quitting many times. We had to budget to the extreme
and find additional ways to make it work.”
She added: “There are questions of how are we going to make it work
and do we have the money. As a parent, sacrifices are there all the
time. You make those judgment calls every day. But making sure that
you’re investing in yourself. There’s always gonna be reasons why
it’s not today, not this month, not this year, but it’s also OK to
just jump in and go for it and see how it works out.”
As an avid book lover, Swavely now wants to take a book editing
course and hopes to continue her education and enroll in that
through the university soon.
Overcoming barriers to returning at any age
Some experts say one of the main barriers to returning to school is
psychological. There might be concerns that their writing skills are
rusty and that they don't know enough math or technology, bringing
up feelings of uncertainty or failure.
“I think this is tied to access. Many of our learners, not all of
them, haven’t imagined themselves in any kind of higher education,
post-secondary education environment,” Fordham said.
Swavely said it was important for her to build a support network and
take advantage of the counseling and advising options that were
available to her as a student.
She encourages adults who are furthering their educations to spend
time “finding your community.” Having people around who helped build
up her confidence at home and during classes got her through
graduate school, Swavely said. She also suggests setting boundaries
and giving yourself grace when you need need help.
“The biggest piece of advice is for people to realize you’re never
too old to learn," she said.
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