Whether you're a working professional looking to upskill in your career, a parent seeking to return to college or someone with a busy daytime schedule, you might think it’s impossible to achieve a degree or certificate while balancing these other priorities.
That simply isn’t true anymore, says Tammy Bruno, director of Evening College at Niagara County Community College (NCCC). As the demographics of college students continue to evolve, colleges are shifting their focus, recognizing the need to create more flexible and diverse learning options for non-traditional students.
That’s where “different resources and different modalities,” such as evening classes, come in, Bruno says. “It's never too late to pursue an education, whether you're three classes away from that degree that you started 10 years ago or starting something completely new.”
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At NCCC, traditional daytime classes are no longer the sole focus. It is prioritizing four areas as it unveils NCCC at Night, an initiative aimed at reinventing the evening college experience for students of all ages. It kicks off just in time for the fall 2023 semester, which begins Monday, Aug. 28.
Community
Say goodbye to that stereotype of an empty, dull, after-hours campus. For NCCC at Night, mirroring the energetic, bustling daytime experience was crucial.
“Any of the services that they would be able to access during the day will also be available in the evening,” Bruno says. “We want there to be a feeling of community, with good energy and the same vibrant experience they would have during the day.”
The Learning Commons acts as the central hub for evening students – with computers, library access, a coffee shop, food options and a shared area for socializing and studying all in one place. Offices for various college departments are also close by and staffed into the evening hours.
Scheduling and credit flexibility
A frequent frustration for non-traditional students is that only limited classes are available in the evenings.
But at NCCC, 16 degree and certificate programs in education, liberal arts, nursing, and business can be taken entirely in the evening, with dozens of classes offered either at night or online to fit busy schedules.
Students also worry about prior credits and other life experiences, wondering if they’ll have to start their degree paths from scratch. NCCC’s advisement services will work with each student to fully assess how any prior learning, including transfer credits, military experience or professional experience, could count toward a degree.
Affordability
NCCC boasts one of the lowest tuitions in Western New York, Bruno says. More than 90% of students also qualify for some sort of financial aid, including private scholarships.
“Students can learn about the resources that are available to them by just meeting with one of our financial aid counselors,” she says.
Support services
Support services for college students are crucial, and they can be another area in which non-traditional students could have felt slighted in the past. It can be frustrating to need assistance but only be able to get it during regular business hours.
At NCCC at Night, signature support services – including things like childcare assistance and staffed offices for financial aid, IT, advisement, tutoring and more – are open into the evenings. They’ve also found solutions for transportation issues that may arise.
“We're on the bus routes,” says Bruno, “and there's also a shuttle that goes back and forth between downtown Niagara Falls and the Sanborn campus.”