Men are much more likely than women to start college and leave without a credential. They’re also far less likely to return later and complete it.

That’s according to the American Institute for Boys and Men, which recently put out a report on the challenges of getting men re-engaged in college. Men make up 42% of undergraduates and half of all stopouts, according to the report. 

Stephanie Baker, senior policy manager in the higher education program at New America, told me in an email that the fact that men are more likely to stop out than women is also true for student fathers: 61% of student fathers stop out, compared to 48% of student mothers. (About 11% of male undergraduates are fathers.) 

📚 Read more: Few taking advantage of program to help Ohioans with ‘some college, no credential’ return to campus (via our partner Signal Ohio) 

Personal or family pressure and financial strain are the most common reasons for people to leave college. Adult learners must juggle jobs and caregiving on top of attending programs that are often designed for full-time students. About a quarter of men also leave for career or military reasons, the institute found. And as Adam Echelman, our community college reporter at CalMatters reported, men are also often socially isolated, something California Gov. Gavin Newsom has called a crisis.

It’s critical that colleges make flexible, part-time pathways available — something that would benefit student parents and adult learners of any gender, Baker said. It’s also important that colleges take steps to reach men about the importance of filing the FAFSA and support them in completing it, as student fathers are less likely than student mothers to file the federal financial aid application. 

We explored some of the challenges of engaging adult learners in a story we did at the end of last year with Bridge Michigan. Kim Kozlowski, Bridge Michigan’s education reporter, dug into the state’s Futures for Frontliners program, which offered free tuition to workers who were designated as “essential” during the pandemic. It was open to 625,000 state residents. Now as it’s winding down, just 1 in 4 who enrolled ended up earning a degree or credential. 

States should keep adult learners in mind when designing financial aid and re-enrollment programs, Baker said. Some states limit eligibility for grant aid by requiring or incentivizing full-time enrollment, for example.

📚 Read more: This college’s strategy for preventing dropouts? Classes half as long (via our partner Wisconsin Watch) 

📚 Read more:  UTEP, El Paso Community College seek to re-engage stopped-out students (via our partner El Paso Matters) 

Re-enrollment programs, which provide financial aid and coaching, are a tool colleges commonly use to attract adults back. Yet programs in the five states analyzed — North Carolina, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Michigan, and Louisiana — serve roughly twice as many women as men, the institute found. 

There is one bright spot. Using data from Michigan Reconnect, a scholarship for adults ages 25 or older, the institute found that men who did re-enroll were at least as likely to complete as women. (The institute called for additional research to figure out why this is the case.) 

We’re a nonprofit newsroom that relies on your support.

If dedicated local reporting on higher ed matters to you, donate to Open Campus today.

Trump administration threatens to take money from paychecks of borrowers behind on loans

Lisa Kurian Philip, our reporter at WBEZ Chicago, and Maddy Franklin, our reporter at Pittsburgh’s Public Source, reported this week about how the Trump administration is trying to crack down people who are behind on student loan payments.

It’s a practice called wage garnishment. With 30 days notice, the government can seize up to 15% of a person’s paycheck if they haven’t made a loan payment for about nine months. More than 170,000 Illinois residents are behind on student loan payments, Lisa reported.

There are options available to borrowers who are behind on payments, including consolidating their loans.

“I hear from a lot of borrowers who sort of throw their hands up. They’re like, ‘Well, I can’t afford payment, so might as well let it default and do wage garnishment,’” Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute of Student Loan Advice told Maddy. “I’m here to tell them that default is always more expensive.”

Elsewhere on Open Campus

From Wisconsin: As Wisconsin’s workforce ages, the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is trying to attract older learners, reports Miranda Dunlap, one of our pathways reporters at our partner Wisconsin Watch.

The university has a Lifelong Learning Institute geared toward older adults who want to learn new things, just for fun. It’s a volunteer-led club offering between 150 and 250 courses each semester. There are no tests, grades, or prerequisites.

“When I retired, I realized I’ve got to keep doing things. You can’t just sit in the chair,” said Gary Lewins, who has taken classes through the institute for a decade. Most recently, he took a class to learn how to digitize all of his old photo albums.

Keep in touch

We’re a nonprofit newsroom that relies on the support of readers like you. Donate today.

Interested in reaching readers who care about higher education in communities across the country? Get in touch or request our media kit.

Please share. Forward this newsletter to colleagues, family, and friends who might be interested. They can sign up for their own copy here.

Run a newsroom and want to improve your coverage of higher ed? Let’s talk.

Got a story tip or a question? Please send it along.