Meeting the moment for adult learners: Lessons learned for the path forward

In their recent Annual Reflections, approximately 80% of ATD Network colleges reported an enrollment focus on adult learners. The opportunity for community colleges to serve adult learners (typically defined as those aged 25+) is huge. It is estimated that as many as 100 million Americans currently don’t have postsecondary credentials; more than 40 million started but haven’t yet completed a credential program, according to the National Student Clearinghouse.

For context, there are about 3.7 million students who graduate from high school each year — and college-going rates have dipped into the low 60% range, the lowest non-pandemic level in three decades, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This has been fueled by a strong economy and questions about the value of postsecondary education.

Contrast these statistics to predictions from the U.S. Department of Education and others that approximately 70% of jobs will require some postsecondary education or training by 2030 and to an estimate by McKinsey & Company that as many as 10 million workers will need some level of reskilling to prepare them for how their jobs will change in the future.

This is our challenge and our opportunity!

Adult learners’ unique goals and needs

While older learners share some of the same characteristics as students enrolling in community colleges directly from high school (full- or part-time employment, lack of financial support, work/life balance challenges, and family responsibilities), adult learners have significant differences from their younger counterparts. Most notably, adult learners enroll in college with specific career goals in mind. Recent research conducted for Improving Economic Mobility for Adult Learners, a joint initiative of ATD and Jobs for the Future (JFF), found that almost 60% of adult learners cited entering the workforce, advancing a current career, and changing jobs or careers as the reason they enrolled. Only about a third of them said they were interested in transferring to a baccalaureate program in the near term.

Adult learners told us they seek programs that offer flexibility, labor market relevance, and efficiency; recognize prior experience; provide personalized learning supports; and lead to clear, actionable outcomes. Despite this, our survey and focus group research with participating colleges found that most adult learners do not receive intentional or proactive career advising when they enroll. About half of adult learners said they discussed career options in their first meeting with advisors, but only about a third discussed the level of education that would be required for specific jobs, and only about 10% reported discussing the earnings potential of different programs of study or credential options. Given this information, it’s not surprising to learn that nationally 67% of returning adult students re-enroll in the same programs they enrolled in initially, leading to low completion rates and generally modest impact on salaries and wages.

The adult students in our surveys and focus groups also told us they don’t receive information about credential acceleration options, including flexible schedules and modalities or assessment of prior learning, which could reduce the number of courses needed to complete a credential. And, they expressed frustration with instructors who don’t connect education and work.

The initiative and early outcomes

The Improving Economic Mobility for Adult Learners initiative was designed to identify high impact policies, practices, and strategies, both in and outside the classroom, to more effectively support adult learners onto and through educational and career pathways that lead to increased social and economic mobility. Nine community colleges in Michigan, New Jersey, and Virginia partnered with state-level postsecondary organizations over the past 18 months to begin to redesign the college journey for adult learners.

Their work focused on answering three key questions:

• How are we currently supporting adult learners, especially those most marginalized, to meet their goals and employer and community needs for good jobs and wages?
• What institutional strengths can we maximize to better meet the needs of adult learners?
• How are our current efforts to support adult learners increasing social and economic mobility and enhancing vibrant communities?

Some of the strategies that colleges have begun or are about to implement include the following:

• Streamlining and aligning applications, financial aid, onboarding, advising and tuition reimbursement processes, using accessible language, and reducing handoffs
• Expanding career guidance to help adult learners navigate job transitions and career advancement through advising that incorporates labor market trends, industry-specific career counseling, and dedicated career advisors who understand unique adult learner challenges
• Providing financial incentives that reward productive persistence and retention
• Redesigning wrap-around services to meet adult learner needs, providing frequent check-ins, accessible advising options, customized course recommendations, success coaches, and early alerts and interventions
• Improving and standardizing policies, processes, and communication about credit for prior learning
• Providing spaces where adult learners can engage, share experiences, and build community/belonging and networking opportunities
• Collecting and disaggregating key metrics for adult learners
• Expanding professional learning opportunities to help faculty, staff, and administrators better understand how to integrate real-world experiences into adult student journeys and recognize the diversity of adult student perspectives and contributions

Additionally, the state organizations are supporting greater alignment in CPL policies and creating opportunities for other colleges in their states to learn from the work.

An opportunity to learn more

On January 22, 2025, ATD and JFF will provide an occasion to learn more about the transformative work undertaken by colleges and states through the Improving Economic Mobility for Adult Learners initiative. Our jointly sponsored webinar, Advancing Economic Mobility for Adult Learners: Lessons from the Field, will provide an in-depth exploration of how participating states and colleges have embraced innovative strategies to better serve adult learners, from streamlining processes and expanding career guidance to creating supportive learning environments and recognizing the unique contributions of adult students.

This webinar, offered at no cost, presents a unique opportunity to hear insights from adult learners about their college experiences, what we have learned from participating college leaders and actionable insights you can apply to your own efforts to improve outcomes for adult learners.