大多数美国大学生“非传统”

Majority of US Undergraduates² Are ‘Nontraditional’ 大多数美国大学生“非传统”

There is a commonly held belief in the United States about the best path to a college education.

Many Americans would say this path involves graduating from high school at age 17 or 18. Then, going off to university to live and study for just four years. And, at the end of that term, receiving a degree.

But, that is not as usual a path as people might think. U.S. Department of Education research suggests that the majority of undergraduate¹ college students take a less traditional approach.

Carey Dwyer is an example. She graduated from high school in 2005 and began studying physical therapy³ at Temple University in Philadelphia. But, after her first year, she decided⁴ she wanted to study nursing instead.

Dwyer moved back home and began seeking an associate’s degree at Montgomery College in Takoma Park, Maryland in 2006. However, medical issues forced her to take time off school. She started working full-time⁵ and going to school part-time.

Dwyer faced several difficulties. But she says nothing was as hard as returning to school after she took the time off.

In 2010, Dwyer completed her associate’s degree -- also called a two year degree. She was 24. Then, she joined the Army. Using the money she earned, Dwyer completed a bachelor’s degree at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina in 2015.

Now married with three children, she says she does not mind that it took her almost ten years to complete her education. In the end, she says she only put in all the effort because she wanted to.

"Ultimately⁶, all that matters is that I got my degree done. I didn’t get it for anyone else. I did it for me, specifically⁷, to follow my goals and my aspirations⁸."

Strayer⁹ University is a for-profit college with centers all over the country. Earlier this year, Strayer worked with the media company U.S News and World Report to create the 2016 College Experience Survey. The researchers gathered information from 1,000 U.S. undergraduate students.

The study findings¹⁰ showed that 70 percent of the students questioned were “nontraditional.”

But what does nontraditional mean? The Strayer report identifies nontraditional college students in several ways. A student who passes General Educational Development (GED) tests instead of earning a high school diploma is considered nontraditional. So is a student who works¹¹ more than 35 hours a week, or studies part-time while seeking a bachelor’s degree. And, a student who was 25 years or older when they last took classes, or when they graduated, is also considered nontraditional.

Information from the U.S. Department of Education suggests the nontraditional student population may be growing. In 2013 the department reported 29 percent of undergraduates were between 18 and 24 years old, studying full-time in four-year degree programs.

Karl McDonnell is the chief executive¹² office of Strayer Education, the company that owns Strayer University. McDonnell says there are so many nontraditional students now because many see education as the best way to reach new opportunities. But, he adds, nontraditional students also have much different needs.

"Over the last 5 to 10 years we’ve had a more challenging labor¹³ market. So as people try to find well-paying jobs and/or move up in their organization, a college degree is becoming more and more important -- you might even say essential. And the types of programs that higher education needs to pursue¹⁴, they tend to be things that are flexible in nature."

McDonnell notes that most of the students at Strayer University are nontraditional. They are often older people with years of work experience and families to raise. This means they need to be able to attend classes during the times that they are not working or caring for others, he says.

McDonnell argues that most schools are much more concerned with their traditional students. Online courses like the ones Strayer offers are increasingly¹⁵ useful for nontraditional students, he says.

But others suggest there is more schools need to do for nontraditional students than just offering classes over the internet.

Eva Yuma is in the final year of her bachelor’s degree program at the University of Maryland (UMD). She also took a long path to get where she is now.

Yuma took a year off from studies after graduating from high school. She then started seeking a degree in art history at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland¹⁶ in 2009. More than two years later, she found she was unhappy and moved back to the U.S. In 2013, she returned to school and became a film major.

Yuma says the most difficult part about going back to school was deciding to take on more debt to pay for her continuing education. But she also says her relationship to her school changed.

For example, she says she does not seek new friends the way she did during her first few years of higher education. Yuma says she feels more professional than the traditional students. She believes she is less afraid to speak her mind.

But Yuma argues UMD could do more to build connections between the nontraditional students. That way they could share their networks and experience.

"There isn’t very much community for those students. I guess they assume¹⁷ that you already have an established community; you don’t need the undergrad experience like the other kids do."

Yancey Gulley is an assistant professor for the higher education student affairs program at Western Carolina University. He has 15 years of experience as a college administrator¹⁸. The educator says schools need to stop using the term “nontraditional.” He worries that the term could harm students. It may make some feel that their schools consider them less intelligent or less hardworking.

"It really does say to them, ‘You are an exception¹⁹. You shouldn’t belong here. You’re probably not going to be successful, but we’re gonna to let you give a good old try. Good luck to you.’ And that’s really demonizing students [that] walk around our campuses²⁰ every day and take our classes."

Gulley notes there are programs in place that are designed to support nontraditional students. For example, Fayetteville State University offers a program that opens a faster path to a nursing degree for people who already have nursing experience. The University of Maryland also works with a foundation²¹ to provide financial assistance²² to older students.

But, Yancey Gulley says some schools may not realize they are failing to provide equal support to their students. The U.S. higher education system was designed for traditional students. Gulley says schools must make sure all their students can access all the same supports and services.

Words in This Story

graduating – v. earning a degree or diploma from a school, college or university

undergraduate – n. a student at a college or university who has not yet earned a degree

associate’s degree - n. a degree that is given to a student who has completed two years of study at a junior college, college or university in the U.S.

bachelor’s degree – n. a degree that is given to a student by a college or university, usually after four years of study

aspiration(s) – n. something that a person wants very much to achieve

diploma – n. a document which shows that a person has finished a course of study or has graduated from a school

challenging – adj. difficult in a way that is usually interesting or enjoyable

essential – adj. extremely important and necessary

flexible – adj. easily changed

online – adj. done over the Internet

assume – v. to think that something is true or probably true without knowing that it is true

demonizing – v. trying to make someone or a group of people seem bad or wrong

realize – v. to understand or become aware of something

1 undergraduate   

n.大学生，大学肆业生

参考例句：

• Mr. Stone spent his undergraduate days in Columbia University,majoring in economics.斯通先生在哥伦比亚大学度过了他四年的大学生活，主修经济学。
• During this time,they are called undergraduate students.在此期间，他们被称为大学本科生。

2 undergraduates   

（未获学士学位的）大学生，大学肄业生( undergraduate的名词复数 )； 本科生

参考例句：

• All undergraduates reading English attend a turtorial group each week. 所有攻读英语的本科生每周上一次导师辅导课。
• This is a course for undergraduates. 这是为本科生开的一门课。

3 therapy   

n.治疗；疗法

参考例句：

• The doctor said she should be given a physical therapy.医生说她应该进行理疗。
• She will need to have the therapy repeated every few months.她将需要每隔几个月就进行一次治疗。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

6 ultimately   

adv.最后地，最终地，首要地，基本地

参考例句：

• It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience.那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。
• Vitamin C deficiency can ultimately lead to scurvy.缺乏维生素C最终能道致坏血病。

7 specifically   

adv.明确地，具体地；特别地，特意

参考例句：

• The book was written specifically for children.这本书是特地为儿童编写的。
• I told you specifically not to do that.我明确地告诉你不要那样做。

8 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

9 strayer   

迷路者，流浪者，不走正路的人

参考例句：

10 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。

11 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

12 executive   

adj.执行的，行政的；n.执行者，行政官，经理

参考例句：

• A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
• He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。

13 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

14 pursue   

vt.继续，从事；追赶，追踪；追求

参考例句：

• He began to pursue an easy and comfortable life.他开始追求安逸舒适的生活。
• This is the path that we shall continue to pursue.这是我们要继续走的道路。

15 increasingly   

adv.逐渐地，日益地，逐渐增加地

参考例句：

• Rivers are being increasingly made use of by man. 河流正在日益为人类所利用。
• I find it increasingly difficult to live within my income.我发现靠收入过日子越来越难了。

16 Scotland   

n.苏格兰

参考例句：

• He has been hiking round Scotland for a month.他围着苏格兰徒步旅行了一个月。
• Scotland is to the north of England.苏格兰在英格兰之北。

17 assume   

vt.假装；假定，设想；承担；呈现，采取

参考例句：

• I assume that he won't cheat you.想来他是不会骗你的。
• We can't assume anything in this case.在这种情况下我们不可能做出假设。

18 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

19 exception   

n.例外,除外

参考例句：

• Everyone should keep discipline and you are no exception. 每个人都应该遵守纪律,你也毫无例外。
• There's an exception to every rule. 每项规则均有例外。

20 campuses   

n.（大学）校园（campus的复数形式）

参考例句：

• University campuses are often the bellwether of change. 大学校园往往引领变革的新潮。
• Sport looms much larger on US campuses than in China. 体育在美国大学比中国大学突出得多。 来自互联网

21 foundation   

n.[pl.]地基；基础；基金会；建立，创办

参考例句：

• The foundation of the university took place 600 years ago.这所大学是600年前创办的。
• The Foundation gives money to help artists.那家基金会捐款帮助艺术家。

22 assistance   

n.援助，帮助

参考例句：

• She called and called but no one came to her assistance.她叫了又叫，但没有人来帮。
• He will get the great possible assistance.他将获得尽可能大的帮助。