More and more older individuals are choosing to go to college. It is an extremely modern trend that sees a higher number of mature students wanting to attend lectures and obtain a degree than ever before. It is no surprise considering the educational opportunities that are available now were probably not available to them when they left high school ten, twenty or even thirty years ago. Going to university is not a novel concept but it may seem that way to individuals that never had the opportunity. Now that they do have the opportunity, they want to make the most of it!
A mature student may apply to go to college for any number of reasons. It may be that they feel a career change is in order, or that they want to do something for themselves now that their children are old enough to fend for themselves. These are the two most popular reasons why individuals apply to college in their twenties, thirties, forties and even fifties, but what about the financial wrench that their families will experience as a direct result of one less income to deal with when they do attend a campus based university or college? Education would then be their full time pastime, but what of the lost income?
There is financial aid available for mature students, and only for mature students. This means that you do not have to compete with the general public for grants and scholarships, only people over the age of twenty-five. Some may actually stipulate that the minimum age is thirty, but they are in the minority. There is national, state and college funding available for mature students because the government is dedicated to getting a high number of individuals over a certain age into education as part of their initiative to bring education to the masses. Most colleges and local governments have followed the federal government initiative and recognised that a massive section of the workforce would be neglected if older individuals were not encouraged to apply.
Applications from older individuals usually depend on whether or not the potential student's family can survive without his or her wage coming in. In the vast majority of cases, the answer would be no, unless of course that individual was not working in the first place or they had some sort of funding behind them. As we all get older, it becomes harder and harder to afford to live without a wage coming in. As soon as this was brought to the attention of governmental officials, more funding became available.
Grants are offered by local governments and individual schools to encourage mature students to apply. This can actually be as much as needed to cover tuition fees or just a small supplemental income, because it is largely based on the family annual income following the deduction of the applicant's salary. However, you can apply to more than one source for funding and low-income family grants may also be available to you too.
The funding offered to individual mature students does not just stop with a bachelor or associate degree though Mature students can also apply for Masters and PhD funding if they are simply looking to extend their education instead of starting it. There are many grants and scholarships that can be found via a simple search that are tailored to this purpose. Therefore, regardless of your individual intentions, it is wholly possible to find funding to enable you to achieve whatever dream it is you have as a mature student. You can make your own destiny without seeing your family fall below the poverty line!