More and more students are attending college, a new report by Pew Research Center revealed. In fact, almost 40 percent of 18-24 year olds were enrolled in college classes last year, which was a record-setting percentage. Experts believe this increase was driven by more students attending community colleges than ever before.

“We have anecdotally got this sense that there’s been this college enrollment boom,” said Richard Fry, a research associate at Pew Research Center. “But now we’ve got confirmation, and we know that at least among young adults, the increase seems to be a two-year college phenomenon.”

Part of the reason for this surge in college attendance is that more students are graduating high school than ever before. By October 2008, 84.9 percent of 18-24 year-olds had completed high school.

The increase is not limited to only two-year, community colleges. Enrollment at four-year colleges and universities is also on the rise; roughly eight million students are attending these schools. However, the increase is still the most noticeable at two-year schools.

Why?

This could be due to the economic recession. Community colleges cost less than larger universities and allow students to get a head start on their academic careers.

The most important thing about this new report is that it shows that students are starting to bridge the education gap in the hopes of finding better jobs. Hopefully we will continue to see an increase in the percentage of students who attend college every year.

Via New York Times.

When I was in high school, I attended classes from 9:00 in the morning until 3:30 in the afternoon, Monday through Friday. Now that I’m in college, I try to make my schedule a little more sleep-friendly, but I still attend most of my classes between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

Sure, there’s the occasional night class, but those are usually done by 9:00 p.m. at the latest. My friend has a class that lasts until 9:30 p.m. two nights a week, and he complains about it all the time.

Winston Chin, a student at Bunker Hill Community College, would probably think my friends and I are sissies. Chin is a part-time student who attends night classes. And by night, I mean middle-of-the-night. Chin attends a night class from 11:45 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. every Tuesday night, after working an eight-hour job as a lab technician.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re one of the many adult Americans heading back in to the classroom, we want to help arm you with information you need to make that a successful transition.

The Today Show recently featured Kim Clark from U.S. News and World Reports, who explains some of the things adult students need to know.

1. Seek a federally accredited institution. Without this, you’ll likely miss out on financial aid, credits will not transfer (to or from), and employers may not recognize the degree/diploma. Learn more about college accreditation.

2. Consider an online college. There’s a reason more than four million students attend these institutions and why their enrollment is growing at double-digit rates. They offer convenience, flexibility and are often more affordable. They’ve really upped their game making it worth your while. Read the rest of this entry »

Last June, we heard about a community college that was allowing donors to name a college course after themselves if they donated enough money to keep the course active during cutbacks. Basically, sponsor a class, have it named after you.

Unfortunately, that plan fell through. Some school officials were afraid of the implications that the rule could have had. What if a tobacco company sponsored a health class? Or a church sponsored a world religion class? The views of the class might be a little skewed, which would decrease the quality of the education students would receive.

Now, the City College of San Francisco is simply asking for donations to resurrect classes that have been cut. For $6,000, sponsors can bring back any one of the more than 800 classes that have been cut during the past school year. Read the rest of this entry »

When it comes to comedy, NBC knows how to make us laugh. This fall, they are debuting the sitcom “Community,” which stars comedian and actor Chevy Chase and Joel McHale of “The Soup.” The fictitious Greendale Community College is the backdrop for a group of misfits who form a study group in order to support one another in their studies. But the more the group gets together, the more they learn about the quarks and idiosyncrasies of themselves and one another.

Directed by Emmy Award-winning directors Joe and Anthony Russo of “Arrested Development,” “Community” contains the same whimsical and bizarre humor and characters as some of NBC’s other smash hits like “The Office” and “30 Rock.” But the college setting pokes fun at academic life, the community college culture and the band of characters that comprise the cast like a high-strung perfectionist, a 28-year-old drop-out with something to prove, a sassy middle-aged divorcee and pop culture junkie. Read the rest of this entry »

By now it’s completely clear that President Obama makes education a high priority. Right along with jobs. So it should come as no surprise that Obama has proposed a plan that could benefit both of those efforts. His proposal is for the feds to spend $12 billion during the next 10 years in community colleges, focusing on:

• Modernizing community college facilities
• Increasing quality online courses, including making those free to the public
• Improving program completion rate

Colleges most interested in “trying something new,” according to James Kvaal, the president’s special assistant for economic policy, will get the bulk of the money. About $9 billion has been marked for “encouraging two-year colleges to experiment with strategies to create and improve programs that prepare students for good jobs,” according to an article at USA Today. Read the rest of this entry »

Some schools have more of an open door policy than others. The Ivy League, private schools or some of the more elite and respected universities in the country will be the hardest colleges to get into. Most state schools, while no pushovers, make a college education more accessible. State colleges and universities by all means have standards, rich traditions and reputations that should be upheld. Otherwise, how much is that piece of paper really worth?

There are those, however, that are more accessible and less selective. Some of these include:

Weber State University – 100 percent acceptance

University of Texas San Antonio – 99 percent acceptance

University of Texas El Paso – 99 percent acceptance Read the rest of this entry »

Two students at City College of San Francisco look at the list of classes that will be canceled next semester. (via SFGate.com)

The College of Journalism and Mass Communication at The University of Oklahoma is named after the Gaylord Family. The football stadium at The University of Minnesota was also named after a donor, T. Denny Sanford. It’s pretty common practice: a person makes a large donation to a college, and the college names something after the donor. Well, now, City College of San Francisco is letting donors name courses after themselves.

Don Griffin, Chancellor at City College, is accepting donations of $6,000 to save classes that are on the “endangered species” list at the college. About 800 classes are endangered of being canceled next semester due to budget cuts. There are typically 30 students in each of these classes. The classes that might be canceled include everything from Financial Accounting to Advanced Kung Fu. Read the rest of this entry »

If there is one thing college students know it’s the high price of an advanced education. Let’s face it… college is down right expensive. There are, however, ways in which to defer the high cost of a college education. Most conversations will lead into the realm of scholarships, but this is not one of them.

The topic of this conversation is this… utilizing community colleges to decrease the cost of your overall education. Now, you are probably wondering how community college will save you money on your education, but it really is simple.  Read the rest of this entry »

This is one of the remedial classes that Martin takes at her college.

Nobody really wants to take remedial classes, which are a prerequisite for higher level courses, but do not count for college credit. Think of it like a fifth year of high school, except that they cost the same as a class that does earn credit, usually around $300-$600 per class.

Bethany Martin, a freshman at Blue Ridge Community and Technical College, was surprised when she enrolled and was told she needed to retake classes she had studied in high school. Most blame the need for remedial courses on a disconnect between what is expected from high school and college students. Read the rest of this entry »