The Art and Science of Supporting Adult Learners
Actionable Steps & Strategies

Watch the recording

This is a free webinar hosted by CAEL, AASCU, and SCUP.

Students over the age of 25 are the fastest-growing segment in higher education. From 2000 to 2012, the enrollment of students over the age of 25 increased by 35%, and between 2012 and 2019, the share of students over age 25 increased by another 23%.

Even though more adult learners and nontraditional students are enrolling in higher education, many institutional practices do not consider the unique needs of this population. The best adult learner strategies not only increase student satisfaction, they improve enrollment rates and adult degree attainment.

More than ever, nontraditional students and adult learners are making up more and more of the student body at colleges and universities across the country. Institutions can create equitable pathways that can help overcome disparities in adult learning, and better prepare themselves for adult students who have been disconnected from higher education.

Learn how to effectively stand out from other institutions who are making mistakes in 10 key areas with the adult learner population.

Learning Outcomes

1. Discover best practices and tips for engaging and supporting adult learners at your institution.
2. Identify gaps you can address to significantly improve adult learners’ satisfaction.
3. Discuss why schools make incorrect assumptions about what adult learners need to succeed, and how to fix those assumptions.
4. Discover how Kennesaw State University applied adult learner insights to a comprehensive PLA database to maximize adult learner success.
5. Compare adult learning in this time and environment – what has changed?

Resources to Access Today

• Reaction to Crisis: Adult Higher Education’s Lessons Learned: Key Findings and 13 Actionable Steps to Improve Experiences for Adult Learners
• Executive Summary: Reaction to Crisis: Adult Higher Education’s Lessons Learned: Key Findings and 13 Actionable Steps to Improve Experiences for Adult Learners
• The Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) Boost: Results from a 72-Institution Targeted Study of Prior Learning Assessment and Adult Student Outcomes
• Decades of data. Ten time-tested principles of Serving Adult Learners
• Recognizing Prior Learning in the COVID-19 Era: Helping Displaced Workers and Students One Credit at a Time

Presenters

Scott Campbell (Co-Moderator)
Vice President, Partnership Development
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)

Terry Brown (Co-Moderator)
Vice President for Academic Innovation and Transformation
American Association of State Colleges & Universities

Barry Nickerson
Director of Consulting Projects
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL)

Darrin Theriault
Director of Academic Testing and University Prior Learning Assessment Coordinator
Kennesaw State University

Erika de la Riva
Assistant Director – Research & Planning
City Colleges of Chicago

About CAEL
Recognizing that adult learners are the backbone of the U.S. economy, CAEL helps forge a clear, viable connection between education and career success, providing solutions that promote sustainable and equitable economic growth. CAEL opens doors to opportunity in collaboration with workforce and economic developers; postsecondary educators; employers and industry groups; foundations and other mission-aligned organizations.