Savannah State University Holds Adult College Expo

As more workers are laid off from their jobs, more people are choosing to go back to college.

A Minnesota man in his thirties created a blog about his decision to go back to school. It's his first time in a classroom in more than ten years and for a different career.

He talks about how the tests are going and asks others why they decided to go back. The reasons include being laid off, wanting to start a new career, and wanting to feel better about themselves.

In tonight's education report, we found out how Savannah State University is helping adults get back to the books.

Though Melinda Nichols loves her job, not every day is wonderful. "Today was a typical day and I thought what I do now is for the younger. I need to leave this for the younger. So I need something that's a little less stressful," says Melinda.

That's what brought her to Savannah State's Adult College Expo. Hoping to learn what's available for people like her. "People who are over 40 with a family with a full time job," says Melinda.

Savannah State's Dean of Enrollment Management tells us the university had its largest enrollment last fall. "We're excited about where things are heading and we're reaching out to non-traditional students, to students of different ethnicities and backgrounds and we want to make sure they know that Savannah State has a home here for them," says Adrian Cornelius, SSU Dean of Enrollment Management.

"Obama is the one that made me decide to go back to school," says Mary Ellen Griffin who has a job, but she's thinking about continuing her medical education. Before going back to school, she put her son's education first.

"He's in college now. So now it's my turn," says Mary Ellen. Both Mary Ellen and Melinda have their concerns about going back to school.

"Financial issues. Being able to afford it. I have a son that will be heading to college in a couple of years," says Melinda. But they'll find ways to make it work.

The main reason why Mary Ellen is at this Adult College Expo is because you never know when you may get laid off. "It's not just affecting a few. So I know this is an opportunity for all of us to look at our careers and decide that we can do more than one thing," says Mary Ellen.

Savannah State isn't the only school attracting older students. Georgia Southern calls them "mature students" and their enrollment increased in the last year: 22 in Spring 2008 to 37 in Spring 2009.

An Armstrong Atlantic State University spokesman says they've also experienced recent growth in both undergraduate and graduate non-traditional student enrollment. Armstrong has nearly 3,000 students considered non-traditional.

Savannah State University
Armstrong Atlantic State University
Georgia Southern University
The Non-Traditional Student Website
Advice for Older Students Going Back to School
CNN: Going Back to School to Get a Job

More Info About Georgia Southern's Mature Students:
We define mature students as students whose high school graduation class graduated 5 or more years ago or whose last term in a previous college was more than 5 or more years ago.

More Info About AASU:

AASU currently enrolls 2,118 undergraduate students who are non-traditional (over 25 in age) and 763 graduate students who are non-traditional (return to school to pursue a graduate degree after being employed for a period of time). The majority of our graduate students are non-traditional. Nearly a third of all AASU students are non-traditional students.

AASU has experienced recent growth in both undergraduate and graduate non-traditional student enrollment with particular growth in the graduate program of 16.3 percent.

Liberty Center campus (Hinesville) spring enrollment reached an all-time record of 1,288, an increase of 20.1 percent from the same time last year. The majority of Liberty Center students are non-traditional students.

Flexible daytime class schedules, known as “Flex Term,” offer many non-traditional students condensed courses that better suit work schedules.

The average age of the on-traditional undergraduate student is 25.4.

The average age of the non-traditional graduate student is 33.9.

AASU offers many programs such as information technology, economics and a Master of Arts in Teaching, in which students can get all of their courses online. All university core courses are available in the evening.

Many courses are available online and students can earn degrees online in programs such as the bachelor of science in information technology and bachelor of science in medical technology.

The MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching) program allows degreed professionals to pursue a master’s degree and receive initial teacher certification in 15 months.