Students who begin college after taking a pause in their education following high school can have difficulties transitioning to college life. It’s challenging to balance academic duties and personal responsibilities. This is the nontraditional path.

There are many differences between the bureaucracies of high school and higher education. In high school, counselors and instructors play a more active role in your education. In college you are in charge of choosing your classes, communicating with instructors, being in control of your academic responsibilities, and paying tuition of course.

These stark differences between levels of education baffle traditional students, much less nontraditional students.

Student parents, returning students, and older students have different responsibilities such as caring for their children, work responsibilities, and getting used to the implementation of technology in education.

Pedro Barrera, a nontraditional student attending Skyline is pursuing a degree in Respiration Technology. After graduating from high school in 2014, he took a break from education.

After putting pause on his education for eight years, he started college at Skyline College. The child of Cuban immigrants, his motivation to continue his education is a mixture of wanting to help people and broaden his horizons on education.

“I want to help people with a meaningful career and pursue something I haven’t achieved, which is higher education, to reach my peak in education,” Barrera said. “I don’t get financial aid, but I get student loans. I am part of the Promise Scholars Program to help with the cost of books.”

Challenges include for Barrera included the transition from high school level coursework to college level coursework because he found it much more rigorous.

Isaac Santiago, a 27-year-old former nontraditional student received his bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Berkeley in 2022. He transferred to Cal from Pasadena City College, and was able to receive different resources from the community college.

“I got financial aid, scholarships, and help from Underground Scholars. The Public Service Center helped me get my first internship. DSP offered me transportation services to get to classes because I was recovering from a dislocated knee” Santiago said.

Upon transferring to Cal, Santiago was able to receive support, but once courses started he was mostly left to his own resources.

Santiago struggled to find people who could relate to his background at UC Berkeley.

“The challenges I faced was a silent community, as a gang-impacted and formerly incarcerated person it’s hard to find someone with similar experiences that you can relate to,” Santiago said. “It was hard to navigate the education system.”

When comparing the services offered to him at both schools, he explained that Pasadena City College paid him to go because of his family’s income status. Additionally, Berkeley would send him money to pay for housing. The most noticeable difference though, was how classes at community college were more personal, as it was easier to talk to classmates.

Santiago and Barrera have experienced different journeys to higher education, and continued their education after high school at distinct institutions of higher education. Both scholars have received support from programs at their respective colleges. Similarities between services provided at two-year and four year universities include financial aid and groups that offer supportive services to students such as Promise Scholars and Underground Scholars.

By providing students with resources that will aid in their ascent in the crucible of higher education, we are able to change not only their lives, but the lives of the people they will encounter after they graduate.