For these mature students, obtaining a degree means multitasking: NPR

A new father trying to support his family. A grandmother who finishes what she started more than forty years ago. A man who navigates in several schools, hidden programs and financial obstacles. These are just some of the older students seeking a degree in the United States.

The majority of students today have features that describe them as "non-traditional": they work; they raise children; they do not come directly from high school. And while some people only take a few years to make money or take care of their families, others date much later in life.

In 2018, according to federal government estimates, nearly 7.6 million students were 25 years old or older. This represents about 2 in 5 students in higher education.

And being an older student has its own challenges – think about the years that separate them from their last high school mathematics course. But these students explain to NPR that later studies also have advantages: they have skills and tools that could have happened only with age and maturity.

Here are some of their stories.

– Elissa Nadworny, NPR

Santa Benavidez Ramirez, 42 years old (San Antonio)

When Santa Benavidez Ramirez performs a big test or an important task, she takes a few hours of vacation and goes to the library.

The 42-year-old mother of four is working full-time in the finance department of the San Antonio community college system. The school library is about 10 minutes away.

"It helps because it's calm and it does not bother me because I'm already at work," Benavidez said. "And of course, it helps with my grade, no matter what the task is."

It's his fourth semester taking part-time courses at community colleges.

On school evenings, Benavidez pays a babysitter to take care of her four-year-old daughter Madison. his 13-year-old daughter, Jayleen, stays at home or at her father's house. (Her other two children are in their twenties.) During her three-hour course, Benavidez tries to send an SMS to Jayleen to make sure she takes her bath and does her homework.

At 9 pm, in class, she takes Madison to the care of the children and goes to her house to put her daughters to bed. Once everyone is asleep, Benavidez pulls out his textbook and does his homework while the lesson of the day comes back to him in the spirit.

The busy mother says that she would like to go to college right after high school, but at the time, her high school graduation seemed to be a big one success. Benavidez grew up in San Antonio and none of his parents went beyond college. She had her eldest son, Jesus, at the age of 16.

"When I was younger, graduating from high school [was] as the best thing, "she says," we grew up in projects. I did not want to live in projects for the rest of my life, so what we immediately think, is: "Oh, I have to go to work." "

She says she decided to go back to school because her degree had led her as far as possible, both professionally and financially.

"I need a diploma to be able to go from the front – if not here, [then] just in the world elsewhere. "

Eventually, she plans to move to a four-year institution for a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Accounting.

– Camille Phillips, Texas Public Radio

Matt Seo, 29 years old (Chesterfield, Virginia)

On the day of his son's birth, Matt Seo knew that it was time to leave the Navy. He wanted more time with his family, less time on a submarine.

"Love at first sight, it's all BS when it's romantic," he says, "but when it's your child, it's a real thing."

At that time, Seo knew he was going to settle in the Richmond, Virginia area, where his wife and two children live, but he still did not know how he was going to help them.

"It's a pretty scary moment, trying to figure out what will pay the bills when you leave the navy," he says.

Seo was 28, five years of submarine experience and an associate degree in general studies. He knew that he liked to settle things and that he knew that he had to earn a good salary. His path was therefore twofold: find a full-time job and go back to school to gain more skills.

"I knew I wanted to do something in a technical area," Seo recalls. "And to progress in a technical field, you have to have the check in the box, so to speak, of education." But I also knew that I needed to acquire some money. experience."

Thanks to the GI Bill, money was not a limiting factor in choosing a college – but time was running out. And Seo thought that four-year-old schools were "for someone who graduates from high school and who will be able to go to school all day long without having to support his family."

In addition, he needed evening classes and a diploma that he could eliminate quickly. He also knew that e-learning would not suit him. He therefore thought his best option was to work on his electrical engineering technology associate's degree at the local community college. At the same time, Seo works at night as a full time electrician in a factory.

He usually comes home in time to wake his son and read him some books. Then he sleeps all day before heading to school.

Seo says that he earns a lot of money, but with a degree, he could earn even more. Plus, he says, when he will no longer be the man down on the totem, he will be able to eliminate the hours of work of the weekend. It means spending more time with your family.

Soon, Seo would like to start saving for college education for his own children. It would not bother him to join the army, but he does not want them to feel like having to pay for a university degree.

– Mallory Noe-Payne, WVTF

Jarrell Harris, 25 years old (Ford Heights, Ill.)

Six years before the birth of Jarrell Harris, his hometown – just outside of Chicago – was designated as America's poorest suburb. Harris says that as he grew up, he was fully aware of how such labels defined him in the eyes of others.

"[People say] there is nothing good that comes from Ford Heights, Ill .; they always shoot there, they always fight. "

In some ways, Harris considers himself a rebel in his community: he graduated high school and immediately went to college, the first of his family to do so.

It was seven years ago. During this period, Harris attended four different colleges before obtaining a bachelor's degree. Harris said the transfers were due to the fact that he simply did not know how to manage the academic world as a first-generation student.

He admits that he has not studied enough at his first school and that he has had academic difficulties. And then there was money – even with loans, it was too expensive. There were also transcription problems and credits that were not transferred, which led him to start again.

He would like to know more about college, including how to handle financial aid. Looking at his preparation in high school, "everything was made of peaches and cream, but no one wanted to talk about the crust," he says.

In 2017, Harris earned an associate degree at a local two-year school while working full-time. This semester he is attending classes at a four-year school and a community college, passing credits to a bachelor's degree. He still has a student debt in his first year of studies, which he did not pay. He hopes to graduate in 2020.

– Kate McGee, WBEZ

Liz Bracken, 66 years old (Atlanta)

Liz Bracken's life is busy. Between classes at Georgia State University, medical assistant and grandmother, her hands are full.

"I tell people: 'It's only the best moment of my life,'" says Bracken. "And really, back to school was successful … just new ideas and reading."

Bracken has attended the university from time to time since his freshman year at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 1970-1971. At the end of this year, she left school to take care of her mother, suffering from breast cancer. Over the years, she has enrolled in nursing programs in different schools. Although she did not complete her studies, she accumulated enough credits to embark on a career as a medical assistant.

This time, Bracken is an English major. It is part of a state of Georgia program that offers free classes to students 62 and older.

His five grandchildren – three boys and two girls – are very aware of his studies. In August, Bracken started taking a German course. At the same time, her twin grandchildren were learning German in their fifth grade class; it was their second year of studying the language.

"They roll their eyes because I passed them," she says. They say, "Nana, you're going a lot faster than us." "

Bracken is now a college student. She spent part of the spring semester in Paris, abroad, for a course on the French Revolution from the point of view of British writers of the time. She says she's not putting a deadline for graduation.

"Everything is in the journey," she says. "I have no restrictions on how quickly I have to finish."

For others who may be considering returning to college but are unsure of how to handle their requests, Bracken has a suggestion: "Take only one class, try it," she says. "It will not hurt if you take a class and try it."

– Martha Dalton, WABE

Sakeenah Shakir, 45 years old (Chicago)

For Sakeenah Shakir, 45, the most difficult part of the academic year was not to take ACT or know how to pay for studies. The challenge was to delegate: allowing her eldest daughter, Safiyyah, to take up her football duties, her young housewives and her husband to prepare all the family's meals, with the exception of the family's pizza. Friday night, Shakir always prepared from scratch.

Another thing she did not abandon was the home school of her five children. In fact, it is the role that sent her back to school in the first place.

When Safiyyah was about to finish high school in 2015, Shakir sat down to fill out the free Federal Student Aid Application Form (FAFSA) for her daughter. On a whim, she decided to fill the form too.

The Chicago native had begun his studies from high school. But she stopped at 22, after being converted to Islam, getting married and having started a family. It is at this time that Shakir is interested in running a licensed child care and home schooling children.

"It was almost like a paradise, I liked it so much," she says.

But she and her husband, who owns a hair salon, have always agreed that she will finish her engineering degree "someday". From the moment she hit "send" on her impromptu FAFSA, Shakir had hints.

First, she had to take the ACT.

"I thought:" Oh my God, the last time I took ACT, I was 18 "- almost 25 years ago. " she says.

The community college she was hoping to attend provided links to an online preparation course, and Shakir had no problem passing the test. From there she was sent to meet a counselor.

"I always think deep in my mind:" How much will it cost? " And when they told me that my financial help was going to pay for everything, I thought, "Oh wow!" That was probably my biggest concern, "she says." Especially as a non-traditional student, I wanted to be as free of debt as possible and not have to take out a loan. "

She enrolled in a two-year community college and obtained a full scholarship at Governors State University, a four-year-old school where she is currently on the Dean's list.

These days, Shakir sometimes sneaks into classes while keeping his sons on the job with their classes at home. She admits to having shot a few sleepless nights "when big plans are coming," but juggles quite well with her schedule to find time to exercise regularly.

Now, instead of studying engineering, Shakir has changed his major in education. She says that her children's home school has given her a taste for teaching. His dream job is to teach math in college.

– Dusty Rhodes, NPR Illinois

Taryn Jim, 29 years old (Laramie, Wyo.)

For Taryn Jim, the hardest way to go to school as a single mom is to get away from her kids, Layla, 10, and Silas Jr., 7 years old. This is especially true during exams or finals, where she spends a lot of time in the library.

Jim says being away from his kids brings back tough memories.

"Both of my parents went to college, so I ended up alone with my grandparents, my aunt, or even myself," she says. "I think my siblings and I have no memory of our mother spending time with us, but I love spending time with my kids."

Jim, 29, is from North Arapaho and grew up on the Wind River Indian Reserve in Wyoming. She says that as she grew up, she never thought about going to college – not until after Layla had. His daughter was born with severe brain damage and an underdeveloped skull, a congenital malformation called microcephaly.

"The day of his birth was the first day I knew what a speech therapist was," Jim explains. And meeting this speech therapist made him think about his own career prospects. At the time, Jim had two jobs, in a kindergarten and a Head Start program, and was barely making ends meet.

"I'm just fed up with working in minimum wage jobs," she says. "I want to give them [Layla and Silas Jr.] a better life than I had. "

But Layla needed special attention and Jim had to wait for college so that her daughter's health would stabilize.

Subsequently, Jim began taking part-time courses at a nearby community college and was then transferred to the University of Wyoming, one of only four-year-old state schools. . The transfer meant that his family had to move to Laramie a few hours away. She paid for the relocation using the settlement money from a federal lawsuit for mismanagement of her tribe's mining rights. Without this money, says Jim, the move would have been almost impossible.

At Laramie, Jim had to balance between a full-time student, a single mom and a student leader. She is the president of Keepers of the Fire, a Native American group on campus. She supports her family through scholarships, including one for students from Northern Arapaho, and works part-time for the university.

Jim plans to obtain a degree in Native American studies in May and plans to master a master's degree in social work.

– Taylar Dawn Stagner, Wyoming Public Media