Non-Traditional StudentsAccording to current estimates, approximately 75% of college students are now non-traditional students: they are over the age of 25, attend school part-time, and have delayed entry or returning to college for a variety of personal reasons. reasons. Postsecondary education is necessary for these students to develop their careers and acquire new skills and knowledge in a global society where they are likely to have a longer lifespan than workers of the past. This trend is not limited to North America; it is a worldwide phenomenon. Over the years, these non-traditional students have chosen slower or faster options to proceed through their chosen curricula. They might work incrementally, taking a few courses a year while also taking advantage of workplace tuition reimbursement programs or similar specialized programs to finance their college education. Recently, online education has enabled accelerated progress toward college degrees. Traditional institutions developed these formats to serve working adults, and the emergence of nontraditional institutions such as the University of Phoenix has provided accelerated education in a variety of flexible formats such as asynchronous learning. Programs aimed at nontraditional students date back to the early 1970s. The University of Massachusetts pioneered such efforts when it founded University Without Walls in 1971. UWW is an academic major whose purpose was to help nontraditionals earn a bachelor's degree from a respected university. Students design their own study schedule and can take online, blended, or on-campus classes that fit students' busy lives and complicated schedules. Additionally, students can earn up to 30 credits for learning gained through work and life experiences...... middle of paper ......int candidates with graduate-level studies or to reduce the anxiety of return after an interruption. Some of these are linked to resources for upgrading college study skills. Critics argue that the influx of nontraditional students into the college student market has accelerated a trend toward the “massification” of collegiate education — that is, leading to watered-down pedagogy. this is far below the goals and expectations of elite colleges. Nonetheless, improvements in education geared toward accommodating nontraditional students have had the practical effect of making college more affordable and accessible to all classes of people. Bibliography Brookfield, Stephen. 1986. Wlodkowshi, Raymond, and Carol E. Kasworm (eds.). 2003. Accelerated adult learning: The promise and practice of intensive educational formats. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.