THE REENTRY ADULT WOMAN AT LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY: A THREE CENTER STUDY

Abstract

Adults over the age of 25 now comprise the majority (54%) of college students in New York State; a major new source of University enrollment is the reentry adult woman.;It was the purpose of this study to determine if differences exist between the demographic characteristics, the reasons for return, the identified needs, and the level of satisfaction of reentry adult women enrolled in three geographically different collegiate settings of Long Island University, New York.;To answer these questions, a researcher-constructed, pilot-tested questionnaire, seeking demographic, educational, and vocational information, was distributed in December 1982 to 619 reentry women, twenty-five years of age and over, at the C. W. Post (suburban), Brooklyn (urban), and Southampton (rural) campuses of Long Island University. The response rate was as follows: 44.8% from the suburban setting; 19.6% from the urban setting; and 39.6% from the rural setting.;The findings in this study reveal both differences and similarities among reentry adult women at the respective campuses. Similar reasons were reported by these students for returning to school; "self-motivation" and self-improvement" were the most common. Similar problems were also encountered in returning to school; "budgeting time," "managing the costs," "seeking beneficial advisement," and "poor scheduling of classes" were the most common. The greatest differences appeared between the urban and suburban students. More of the urban adult reentry women students were Black, single/unmarried, heads-of-households, unemployed/homemakers, enrolled in daytime classes and reported the highest grade point averages.;Conversely, more of the suburban adult, reentry women students were White, married, employed full-time, and enrolled in evening courses. They maintained a more diverse age range, indicated spouse as head-of-household, had the largest number of children, and had longer stop-out periods before college reentry. These populations differed in the kinds of services they needed.;Based on the study's results, the following recommendations are made: (1) provide support services, especially for the urban population (Career Counseling, Family Counseling, Day-Care Center, Financial Aid); (2) offer opportunities, especially for the urban adult women to "network" with one another (Adult Student Lounge, Adult Support Group, Adult Student Organization). . . . (Author's abstract exceeds stipulated maximum length. Discontinued here with permission of author.) UMI.