Who Are You As a Student?

Imagine for a moment that you live in the ancient city of Athens, Greece. You are a student at Plato’s University of Athens, considered in modern times to be the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. The campus sits just outside of Athens’s city walls, a mile from your home. You walk to class and take your seat in the gymnasium, where all classes are held. Gatherings are small, just a handful of fellow students, most of whom are men born and raised in Athens. When your class is finished, you walk back to the city. Your daily work awaits you—hurry.

A lot has changed in higher education since Plato’s time. How does your college environment compare to the university in ancient Athens? Where do you live now, relative to campus? Do you report to a job site before or after class? Who are your fellow students, and where do they live in relationship to you and campus? What city or country are they from?

You may find many similarities in the past and the present. You may find many differences, too. Perhaps the most striking difference will be the makeup of each student body. For instance, prior to 1964, historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) were established “with the principal mission of educating Black Americans. These institutions were founded and developed in an environment of legal segregation and, by providing access to higher education, they contributed substantially to the progress Black Americans made in improving their status.”^[1] According to the Women’s College Coalition, “The earliest women’s colleges were founded in the mid-19th century to give women access to higher education. This was a time when many people believed that it was unnecessary to educate women.”^[2]

The number of women’s colleges have declined since 1964 with the passage of the Equal Rights Act. It is not hard to understand why. Through 2019, women now make up roughly 57% of college enrollment and are the majority demographic in mainstream college campuses. Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have declined moderately in number from 121 in the 1930s to 101 institutions today, but maintain their proud traditions with graduates such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Statistics can also provide a window of understanding into what it’s like to be a student in higher education today:

• Number of students enrolled in college: There were 16.6 million undergraduate students enrolled in degree-granting postsecondary institutions in fall of 2019, a 5% decrease from 2009 when undergraduate enrollment was 17.5 million students.^[3]
• Full-time vs. part-time: In fall 2019, degree-granting postsecondary institutions enrolled 10.2 million full-time and 6.3 million part-time undergraduate students. Between 2009 and 2019, full-time enrollment decreased by 7% (from 11.0 million to 10.2 million students) and part-time enrollment decreased by 1% (from 6.4 million to 6.3 million students).^[4]
• Race/ethnicity of undergraduate enrollments: Of the 16.6 million undergraduates enrolled in fall 2019, 8.5 million were White, 3.5 million were Hispanic, 2.1 million were Black, 1.1 million were Asian, 700,000 were two or more races, 120,000 were American Indian/Alaska Native, and 45,000 were Pacific Islander.^[5]
• Community college: In fall 2019, the 11.0 million students enrolled in 4-year institutions made up 66% of total undergraduate enrollment; the remaining 34% (5.6 million students) were enrolled in 2-year institutions. Between 2009 and 2019, enrollment increased by 10% at 4-year institutions (from 9.9 million to 11.0 million students) and decreased by 26% at 2-year institutions (from 7.5 million to 5.6 million students).^[6]
• Working in College: A majority of part-time students (81%) were employed in 2018 compared to 43% of full-time students. ^[7]
• Distance learning: In fall 2019, some 36% (6.0 million) of all undergraduate students enrolled in at least one distance education course, and 2.4 million students, or 15% of total undergraduate enrollment, exclusively took distance education courses. Among undergraduate students who took distance education courses exclusively, 1.5 million were enrolled in institutions located in the same state in which they resided and 849,500 were enrolled in institutions in a different state. We expect to see significant shifts in these statistics due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ^[8]

These brief statistics point to the scope of university life in the United States of America and the diversity of the student body. Clearly there is no “one size fits all” description of a college student. However, each student is responsible for understanding the diverse backgrounds of his or her peers. Who are the students you share classes with? How have they come to share the college experience with you?

In this section, we look at several categories of students and at some of the needs of students in those categories. We also take a brief look at how all students, regardless of background, can make a plan to be successful in college.

Categories of Students

You may take classes with students from many age groups, cultures, and economic backgrounds. The makeup of college students has long been described in two categories labeled as “traditional” or “nontraditional” students.

Traditional Students

Traditional undergraduate students typically enroll in college immediately after graduating from high school and they attend classes on a continuous, full-time basis at least during the fall and spring semesters (or fall, winter, and spring quarters). They complete a bachelor’s degree program in four or five years by the age of twenty-two or twenty-three. Traditional students are also typically financially dependent on others (such as their parents), do not have children, and consider their college career to be their primary responsibility. They may be employed only on a part-time basis, if at all, during the academic year.

Nontraditional Students

Nontraditional students usually do not enter college in the same calendar year that they finish high school. They typically have full-time work obligations, may have dependents, possibly have served or are serving in the military, and/or are caregivers of sick or elderly family members. Some nontraditional students may have received a general educational development degree (GED) instead of a high school diploma.

The Diversity of Students

The classification of students as traditional or nontraditional is still used today despite all that has changed in our society. For example, the National Center for Educational Statistics still tracks student metrics using these categories. More importantly, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) also continues to delineate between traditional and nontraditional students in their determination of aid eligibility.

But many believe these labels to be archaic. We no longer live in a one-size, square-peg world. The majority of students today do not have the luxury to transition immediately from high school to a four-year college. More and more households have two-person incomes and cannot support the additional burden of college costs, making it necessary for students to work significant hours, or join the military, to pay for their education. Perhaps the student does not feel they are ready or prepared to make the leap from high school to college and needs time to experience life.

The bottom line is the traditional versus nontraditional labels do not do justice to the incredible diversity of college students today. Going back to the earlier reference to ancient Greece, Brittany Hively, the editor of The Parthenon of Marshall University, so eloquently states:

“When it comes down to it, we are all students working towards doing something we are passionate about, something we love and changing the world for the better. Tradition is great, but sometimes it is time for tradition to change, and in this case, it is as simple as some terminology”. "Non-traditional vs. Traditional students: It is time to bridge the gap." The Parthenon [Huntington, WV], March 2021..

The following video features several nontraditional students from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Students discuss their status as nontraditional students. Note that the differences are not just with age, but also experience.

You can view the transcript for "Non-Traditional Students at W&M" here (opens in new window).

International Students and/or Non-Native Speakers of English

International students are those students who travel to a country different from their own for the purpose of studying at college. For a lot of international students, English is likely their second language. Non-native speakers of English, like international students, typically come from a different culture too. For both of these groups, college may pose special challenges. For example, classes may at first, or for a time, pose hardships due to cultural and language barriers.

First-Generation College Students

First-generation students do not have a parent who graduated from college with a baccalaureate. College life may be less familiar to them, and the preparation for entering college may not have been stressed as a priority at home. Some time and support may be needed to become accustomed to the college environment. These students may experience a culture shift between school life and home life.

Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities include those who have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders, blindness or low vision, brain injuries, deafness/hard-of-hearing, learning disabilities, medical disabilities, physical disabilities, psychiatric disabilities, and speech and language disabilities. Students with disabilities are legally accorded reasonable accommodations that give them an equal opportunity to attain the same level of performance as students without a disability. Even with these accommodations, however, physical and electronic campus facilities and practices can pose special challenges. Time, energy, and added resources may be needed to ensure these students are afforded an equal opportunity at school.

Working Students

Many students are employed in either a part-time or full-time capacity. Balancing college life with work life may be a challenge. Time management skills and good organization can help. These students typically have two jobs—being a student and an employee. It can be a lot to balance.

Commuter Students

While there are many advantages to living on campus, many students choose to live off campus and commute to class. This may be convenient or necessary for students who have a full set of responsibilities in off-campus jobs. It may also suit students who have the option to live at home with parents to avoid room-and-board fees. Many returning students are commuter students too and may come on campus only for classes. At some colleges, like urban and rural schools, commuting to campus may be the only option.

Check out this story about one student's experience finding the right time to start her college education.