Summary
Post-traditional students are over the age of 24 when they enter higher education; the “traditional” age range of college-goers is typically defined as 18-24. In general, post-traditional students have one or more of the following characteristics: they delayed enrollment in college after high school, they attend part-time for at least part of an academic year, they work full-time while also enrolled in school, they are financially independent, or they have dependents (spouse and/or children).
Enrollment:
- In fall 2019, post-traditional students made up 33.4% of all postsecondary enrollment.
- Male post-traditional students made up 13.2% of all postsecondary enrollment and 31% of all male postsecondary enrollment.
- Female post-traditional students made up 20.2% of all postsecondary enrollment and 35.2% of all female postsecondary enrollment.
- Since fall 2009, overall post-traditional student enrollment has declined from 7.9 million to 6.6 million, a 17.8% decrease.
- Full-time post-traditional enrollment declined from 3.4 million to 2.7 million, a 19.4% decrease.
- Part-time post-traditional enrollment declined from 4.6 million to 3.8 million, a 16.6% decrease.
- Though post-traditional students are much more likely to attend public institutions of higher education versus private, they are overrepresented in the for-profit sector.
- In fall 2019, 73% of post-traditional undergraduate students attended public institutions: 32% attended public four-year institutions and 40% attended public two-year institutions.
- In fall 2019, post-traditional students made up 68.2% of all for-profit enrollment and 81.1% of all for-profit part-time enrollment.
- Post-traditional students are much more likely to enroll in online courses than traditionally aged students.
