Spring 2002

Volume 5 Number 2
A publication of Macon State College

Getting Started

Kimber Mathis, Marnico Brown and Caroline Carter learn about the admissions process and academic advising during a Getting Started seminar. Photos by Renee Pearman

Macon State Makes Special Effort To Reach Adult Students

By Renee Pearman

Charles Matson had not been in a classroom in 15 years when he decided to return to college. Like most adults headed back to school after an extended break, he was worried about the new technology pervading higher education, specifically PCs, and the thought that he might be the oldest student on campus.

"I was enrolled at the University of Georgia, and for one of my first assignments, I had to go to the university library to do research," Matson recalled. "I couldn't find the card index anywhere. I finally asked someone who told me that card indexes, as I remembered them, no longer existed. Everything I needed could be accessed via computer, I was told, and that scared me to death."

The then 39-year-old Matson's worries were alleviated when he discovered there was help from faculty, advisors, staff, tutors and even classmates at every turn. And he also noticed, to his relief, that he was not the only "older" student walking the hallways. In fact, there were quite a few.

"And that's exactly the way it is at Macon State College," Matson said to a room full of adults contemplating beginning - or returning to - college.
Matson, who is director of the respiratory therapy program at Macon State, was one of several members of the MSC faculty and staff answering questions posed by thirty- and fortysomethings attending a "Getting Started" seminar at the college.

The New 'Tradition'

Thirty years ago, the majority of college students on campuses across the country were "traditional" students, meaning fresh-out-of-high school graduates, but not so today.

"Today's 'traditional' student looks more like you," MSC Admissions Director Terrell Mitchell told a recent Getting Started audience, which included adults ranging in age from 23 to 45.

"The average age of an MSC student is 27," Mitchell said. "Nearly half of our 4,600 students are age 25 or older, more than 15 percent are at least 40 years old, and it certainly isn't unusual to see students in their 50s and 60s headed to class."

This trend is nationwide, according to Harold Hodgkinson, director of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Demographic Policy at the Institute for Educational Leadership.

In an interview with The New York Times last year, Hodgkinson pointed out that almost half of the 15 million students in college today are adults with children and jobs. The "Joe College stereotype," as Hodgkinson referred to the 18- to 22-year-old full-time residential student, now makes up only 20 percent of those 15 million.

Increasing the number of adult learners in the midstate was the idea behind Getting Started when it was introduced by Macon State's Admissions and Institutional Advancement offices more than 20 years ago. Since then, admissions representatives have hosted two or three evening seminars per year, reaching working adults who want to begin college or finish their degree.

During the two-hour seminar, members of the faculty and staff meet collectively and individually with potential students to discuss programs of study, present an overview of the admissions procedures and student life, and answer questions about selecting a major, renewing study skills, applying for financial aid and transferring college credit.

Taking the First Step

Matson's library story drew nervous chuckles from several Getting Started attendees who admitted to cyberphobia, as well as an aversion to algebra. They also had questions about financial aid and scholarships, time management and academic advising.
In the course of the evening, their questions were answered - and fears eased -- by representatives of the Financial Aid Office, the Academic Advising Center, the Academic Resource Center, the Counseling and Career Center, and the Admissions Office.

From Kelly Jones, coordinator of the Academic Resource Center (ARC), they learned that one-on-one peer tutoring and computer-assisted learning will aid them in bolstering their proficiency in math and English. Also at ARC, they will find tutors ready to instruct them in computer basics. Academic advisors will help new students decide on a course of study, while the Counseling and Career Center's career specialist, Kelly Kernich, will work with them to determine career interests and develop job search strategies.

"We have someone to help you every step of the way," Mitchell told 23-year-old Bethany Ridgeway of Warner Robins, who is interested in a career in marketing.

"After high school, I just wasn't ready for college," said Ridgeway, a 1996 graduate of Gilead Christian Academy in Macon. "I'm a little older, and my life is a little more stable now, and I feel like I'm ready to give college a try."

One incentive for Ridgeway, the mother of an 11-month-old, is that her employer is willing to pay for her tuition. In addition to learning about the admissions process, Ridgeway, who plans to attend college part-time and work full-time, wanted tips on time management.
Vicki Richardson of Warner Robins has been out of high school for 28 years. She enrolled in Macon State classes at the Robins Resident Center several years ago but had to withdraw due to job and financial obligations. The 45-year-old, who is a budget analyst at Robins AFB, wants to pursue a business degree. Her question to Mitchell was simple: where do I start?

By the end of the seminar, Richardson had application and financial aid information in hand, and she had met Dr. Larry Wolfenbarger, chair of the Division of Business and Economics. "Faculty here are a very student-oriented, congenial group of people," Wolfenbarger assured her.

Richardson had taken that first step.

A More Educated Georgia

Balancing a job, family and college studies is a challenge at best, said Dee Minter, director of Enrollment Services at Macon State.

"Most adult students are hesitant about attending college because they struggle with balancing family, work, college and additional expenses for tuition," she said. "I commend students who manage to juggle these responsibilities, and I know from personal experience that it can be done. One way we can help adults is by offering a flexible class schedule."

For example, Macon State offers a wide range of day and evening classes on the main campus and at its two centers in Houston County. And, while the regular semester runs 15 weeks, the college also schedules two 8-week sessions each term, giving students more options. In addition, the number of online courses continues to increase. The fall schedule includes online courses in business, English, health and information technology.

As for college expenses, the Macon State College Foundation supports several scholarships that are specifically for adult students, and for the past several years, the Foundation has offered the unique "Stick Around" scholarship, which introduces MSC's recent two-year graduates to its new bachelor degrees by paying the tuition for their first course. (To learn more about the scholarships, visit www.maconstate.edu/foundation/foundation.aspx)

Their reasons for beginning or returning to college vary, but Minter said most adult students indicate they are back in the classroom because they want to make themselves more marketable.

"Some are preparing for a new career, others want to advance in their workplace, and they all recognize that a college degree will move them closer to their goals," Minter said. "When Getting Started was created back in the early '80s, our main purpose was to encourage older students to return to college to complete their degree or to begin college and pursue a degree to give themselves more employment options in the workplace."

That is one of the goals of the University System of Georgia's Board of Regents, the governing body of the state's 34 public colleges and universities. To expand higher education opportunities to all citizens of Georgia, the Regents last year developed a strategic plan called "A More Educated Georgia." Specifically targeted by the plan are the so-called "non-traditional" students, which usually include mature adults and even younger students who have job and family responsibilities. Many students in this group attend part-time and make up a majority of the nation's population of college students. It is projected that their numbers will continue to grow in the 21st century.

"Macon State College has a long history of serving adults students," Minter said. "Our message to adult learners is, and always has been, that they are welcome at Macon State and that they will find here a rewarding place to begin or complete their degrees."

The next Getting Started seminar will be at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 18, in the MSC Student Life Center. Call 471-2800 for more information.