An Exploratory Study of the Needs of Nontraditional Students

The purpose of the researcher was to investigate the needs of nontraditional students especially in the areas of life skills development, career development, educational planning and association with others. The sample consisted of 163 nontraditional students. The instrument employed was the American College Testing Adult Learner Needs Assessment Survey. Six independent variables we reinvestigated: 1) gender, 2) marital status, 3) income, 4) opinions pertaining to scheduling of classes, 5) commuting status and 6) numbers of dependent children. The dependent variables employed were: life skills development, career development, educational planning and association with others. A status survey design with predetermined and post hoc grouping was employed. Six null hypotheses were tested employing one-way analysis of variance. Each null hypothesis was tested under four arrangements. A total of 24 comparisons were made and 7 were statistically significant at the .05 level. The null hypotheses gene rating significant differences were rejected. The 7 null hypotheses which were rejected pertained to the following areas: 1) single nontraditional students reported a statistically significant higher inventoried need for life skills, development than married non-traditional students, 2) single non-traditional students also reported a statistically significant higher inventoried need for career development than married non-traditional students, 3) divorced non-traditional students reported a statistically significant higher inventoried need for association with others than married or single non-traditional students, 4) non-traditional students with incomes less than $6,000 reported statistically significant higher inventoried needs for career development than non-traditional students earning $24,000 and greater, 5) non-traditional students with incomes of less than $6,000 and incomes between $12, 000 and $17,999 reported statistically significant higher inventoried needs for association with others than non-traditional students earning $50,000 and more. 6) non-traditional students preferring daytime classes reported a statistically significant higher inventoried need for life skill s development than non-traditional students preferring weekend or evening classes, 7) non-traditional students preferring daytime classes reported a statistically significant higher inventoried need for career development than non-traditional students preferring evening classes.