[Jacqueline-C21037]

I have known several senior women who have gone back to college or started attending college for the first time. Their reasons are varied, but the underlying theme seems to be that their children are grown and out of the house and they are retired so they finally have time to pursue their personal intrests - such as going to college. After retirement, many people long for the challenges and mental stimulation that their careers provided so they go back to school to keep their minds sharp. And since they are not going to school to prepare for a career, they are free to choose majors that really interest them without regard to the marketability of the major. I think that's a great position to be in.

User Detail :  

Name : Jacqueline-C21037, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 26, City : San Jose, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Jim]

Are there any elderly women going back to college to take undergraduate courses? If so, why? Is it to fill a hole in your life by the loss of a loved one? Is it just for the heck of it?

User Detail :  

Name : Jim, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 22, City : Bowling Green, State : OH Country : United States, Occupation : Graduate Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Cindy]

I am not elderly by any means, but I am considered middle-aged. I am taking evening classes to pursue my undergraduate degree. There are many reasons women enter college later in life. In my case, I waited until my children were in high school and no longer dependent on me to be home all the time. Other older women attend college to advance in the workforce or simply because we enjoy the challenge and intellectual stimulation. All of my college instructors will agree that the more 'mature' students generally perform better in class

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Name : Cindy, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Pagan, Age : 41, City : Lansdale, State : PA Country : United States, Occupation : factory assembler, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Linda22706]

I went back to college at 50 when my husband and I moved to a different city and I couldn't find work that paid anything. I had a B.A. already; I took the required education courses to become a teacher. Some of us go back to school for practical reasons.

User Detail :  

Name : Linda22706, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 57, City : Corpus Christi, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : High school teacher, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[CP19188]

There was a woman in one of my classes a year ago who was about 75. She told me she had been studying part-time ever since her husband died 13 years earlier. She takes two courses every semester, I think. She had completed a college diploma and was now taking university courses. I take it that one of her reasons for studying was to combat loneliness, although she did not say so explicitly. She also seemed to have a genuine interest in the subject matter, although her marks were not very high.

User Detail :  

Name : CP19188, Gender : F, Age : 22, City : Montreal, Quebec, State : NA Country : Canada, 

[Rebecca30095]

I know in some states, senior citizens can attend state or community colleges tuition-free. This probably greatly increases the number of older people attending college.

User Detail :  

Name : Rebecca30095, Gender : F, City : Corvallis, State : OR Country : United States, 

[CP19186]

There was a woman in one of my classes a year ago who was about 75. She told me she had been studying part-time ever since her husband died 13 years earlier. She takes two courses every semester, I think. She had completed a college diploma and was now taking university courses. I take it that one of her reasons for studying was to combat loneliness, although she did not say so explicitly. She also seemed to have a genuine interest in the subject matter, although her marks were not very high.

User Detail :  

Name : CP19186, Gender : F, Age : 22, City : Montreal, Quebec, State : NA Country : Canada, 

[Dave26002]

As a former university tutor, I can tell you hat the older students tended to perform much better in tutorials and group dicussions. Their maturity, life experience and greater confidence in sharing their views made clases much more interesting. Many of the ones I taught were at university because they had started degrees prior to marriage and never finished them or found that once their children had left home or they had retired they had more time to fosvus on things they had always wanted to do.

User Detail :  

Name : Dave26002, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 32, City : Upper Hutt, State : NA Country : New Zealand, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[ShirleyAvery]

when older folks - men and women - go back to college, it's usually because they want to learn something new. Sometimes it's because they need to learn a new skill to work even part time. Just Curious

User Detail :  

Name : ShirleyAvery, Gender : F, Disability : none, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Jewish, Age : 52, City : st. louis, State : MO Country : United States, Occupation : writer, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

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