Work, Family and School – Balanced Postgraduate Programs for Full-Time Workers in Finland

Abstract

Today employees have to update their knowledge, skills and competencies to excel in the working world. Therefore, the number of adult students has increased in all forms and levels of education including universities. Adult students bring non-traditional characteristics to campuses including part-time enrollment, full-time employment, and increased family obligations.  In this paper, an analytical model for analyzing different roles of professionals returning to university is developed. The model is then applied to describe the current support systems for adult learners in Finland and to analyze a Finnish postgraduate program solely targeted for professional returning to college. The findings of the study suggest that programs dedicated to adult learners help returning students to find a better balance between their work, family and school roles and thus overcome more easily the institutional, situational and dispositional barriers to study.