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This post is part of our [work in] Progress series, an effort to share our preliminary findings on the impact of artificial intelligence in higher education to help the field move at the pace of technology.
Introduction
Many adult students pursue online education in support of their career or personal goals, however, many do not persist. In fact, data from the National Student Clearinghouse shows that students who enter college at age 20 or younger have consistently held persistence rates around 80%, while those who enter college at 25 or older have persistence rates under 50%. Many of the aspects of being an adult learner — such as being a parent, working a full-time job, and having more financial responsibilities — are negatively correlated with postsecondary success. For example, degree completion for students with children lags significantly behind those without children, at 37% vs 60% (for degree completion within 6 years).
In this study, we evaluated students' emotional states throughout key touchpoints in their learning journey — interactions with their program mentor, enrolling in the program, completing coursework, taking assessments, taking a break from the program, and returning to the program. We defined their emotional states as:
- High emotional state: The student feels highly engaged and positive, experiencing strong emotions like excitement or a sense of achievement.
- Medium emotional state: The student feels generally stable, motivated, and engaged, but without strong emotional highs or lows.
- Low emotional state: The student feels discouraged, disconnected, or overwhelmed, potentially at risk of disengaging or dropping out.
While online programs like those at Western Governors University (WGU), our parent organization, are better able to provide the flexibility and affordability that adult learners need to earn their degrees and progress in their careers, low completion rates remain a challenge.
To better understand the issue of persistence among adult online learners, WGU Labs conducted research within two WGU programs. During this research, we also explored what touchpoints may be most successful in reducing drop rates during the student journey.
Research Conducted
This report presents findings from the initial discovery research project, which was focused on understanding key touchpoints across the Bachelor of Science, Health, and Human Services (BSHHS) and Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education (BAELED) programs.
To meet our goals for this phase of research, we invited students in both the BAELED and BSHHS programs to participate in a 45-minute interview or 30-minute survey. In total, we engaged with 20 students (13 interviews and seven survey responses), all of whom were categorized as low-momentum or low-engagement (defined by low learning resource usage and low program mentor usage). All interviews were recorded and transcribed, and notes from the interviews were coded and used to generate qualitative findings. In addition to our qualitative research, we reviewed data from WGU’s Institutional Analytics and Research team detailing pivotal moments during the student journey. This data was used to confirm preliminary findings found through our qualitative research efforts.
Key Findings
Our student interviews and survey questionnaires revealed several key insights that impact learners’ ability to persist:
- Life disruptions — such as medical emergencies, family responsibilities, or relocations — often force students to pause their studies.
- Program mentors are vital to student success, but high caseloads limit their availability.
- Students struggle with assessments that don’t reflect real-world job tasks, reducing motivation and participation.
- Many students, particularly women, feel uncomfortable with traditional proctoring, which heightens test anxiety and affects performance.
- Online students often feel isolated and want connections with peers facing similar challenges.
Based on these findings, we developed five strategies for improving persistence rates among adult learners:
- Provide a part-time offering to maintain student engagement.
- Use technology to support Program Mentors and enable more time with students.
- Align assessments with real-world scenarios.
- Shift from proctored exams to more inclusive assessment strategies.
- Provide cohort-based learning opportunities.
The Adult Learner Journey
While no two learners are the same, and adult learners are especially hard to generalize, the two student journeys below provide insight into the unique challenges these students face. Each journey follows a student as they enroll, engage in coursework and assessments, take a break, and eventually return to their program.
Marie’s Journey
Marie is a 35-year-old BAELED student who enrolled at WGU to pursue a teaching degree and set an example for her children. Despite having such a strong motivation to earn her degree and persist through her coursework, Marie took a break to focus on her family and their evolving needs. Marie’s journey is reflective of so many others; students want to pursue their degree, but unfortunately, life can get in the way.
Brian’s Journey
Brian is a 28-year-old BSHHS student pursuing a career in health services. He developed a close bond with his program mentor, who acted as a core supporter in Brian’s learning journey. Due to a severe injury, Brian had to take a break from WGU courses. His program mentor continually reached out, even throughout his break, letting Brian know that when he was ready to return, he’d have the support he needed.
Strategies for Improving Persistence Rates
Each student followed a similar journey. They enrolled in their program, made it through a few assessments, and continued from term to term. Eventually, they needed to take a break. Each time, it was because of something that occurred in their personal lives. The opportunities described below summarize potential touchpoints targeted at increasing student retention, course completion, and ultimately graduation rates.
1. Provide a part-time offering to maintain student engagement
In their interviews and survey questionnaires, students made it clear that they did not want to drop out of college. In fact, they consistently maintained their motivation to obtain their degree — the personal obstacles in their lives sometimes even strengthened their motivation.
One student described getting into a car crash and needing to completely drop their courses for the term, saying, “I was all ready to take my exams and then just needed to stop. It sucked, but I still wanted my degree.” Another student shared how they found out they were pregnant the day after signing up for WGU, “I knew I would end up needing to take a break, but I wanted to show my children you can do anything.” Others described suddenly having to move or navigating a disability with their child.
While many students eventually find their way back to WGU, not all students return, and those who do often take longer than preferred. Students view enrolling at WGU as “all or nothing” and want to make sure they can give as much of their time and energy as possible to make the most of each term. As a result, students often wait longer than necessary to ensure they are ready to return to a full course load, maximizing their time at WGU.
Institutional data shows that factors such as failing an assessment or never attempting an assessment are the most significant contributors to high drop rates. However, our research indicates that circumstances in the students’ lives may be just as impactful. There is a potential to explore a part-time offering to see if these students would maintain engagement and enrollment while working through personal matters. By offering a part-time option at a reduced price, several of these low-momentum and low-engagement students could stay connected to WGU and continue making progress.
2. Use technology to support Program Mentors and enable more time with students
Many students start with a fairly high motivation to get their degree. However, not all students can rely simply on their motivation to sustain them through difficult times. A key factor in how and when students continue through their program or return after a break is the student’s relationship with their program mentor. Institutional data shows that 90% of all drops show low engagement.
At WGU, program mentors act as a primary support for students. Some students even credit their program mentors with maintaining their motivation to continue with their coursework. One BSHHS student described their relationship with their program mentor, saying, “He is awesome. He helped me switch programs and checked on me during my break. Honestly, I don’t know what I would’ve done without him.” However, current program mentors support numerous students and are at times unable to provide the on-demand support needed. Finding ways to optimize or augment program mentor performance could increase retention rates, as could decreased caseloads. As part of the intentional effort to leverage AI in WGU Labs’ work, there is also potential to design and deploy AI assistance to further support program mentors and their students, optimizing current program mentor performance and increasing their ability to support students.
3. Align assessments with real-world scenarios
Pre-assessments, while often reflective of the final assessment, do not seem universally useful to students and are unable to mimic the real-world roles that students are preparing for. One BAELED student commented, “The assessments and pre-assessments don’t reflect what I will actually be doing in my job. I’ll be teaching second grade, not writing multi-page essays.” Factors such as individual time and perceived usefulness have the potential to severely impact whether a student takes and passes a final assessment.
Previous institutional data indicate that students who do not take or delay a pre-assessment are likely to drop out, which might indicate a potential connection between the perception of the final assessment’s usefulness and the interest in taking it. It is necessary to find ways to explicitly communicate the importance and relevance of competencies and assessments throughout the course material to increase assessment engagement.
Advances in AI have introduced the potential to develop student evaluations that integrate learning science principles at scale — and offer personalized, relevant, and authentic assessments to students. Following the pedagogy of competency-based education, we can design assessments that focus more heavily on knowledge application, providing opportunities for students to demonstrate what they have learned. And by adding intentional AI integrations, we can more authentically mimic real-world constraints and contexts.
4. Shift from proctored exams to more inclusive assessment strategies
Proctored assessments, while often useful and necessary for online education, can increase test anxiety for students. Female students especially noted the sense that they “feel watched” when taking a proctored exam and that it can impact their performance. One student shared, “I feel uncomfortable knowing the proctor is a man. It makes me even more nervous.” There are several potential methods we can use to help reduce this anxiety, including AI-proctored exams.
5. Provide cohort-based learning opportunities
Social connection in online education is often difficult. Some students find the connection needed through existing course interactions; however, others are searching for more. Many WGU students have families or are navigating a career and classes. They often don’t need social connections to help them get through a course. However, several indicated that they want to connect with other students navigating the same life challenges. Implementing student cohorts by programs can provide students with additional support and access to resources, and has the potential to increase retention. Previous data highlights that when a student has a strong support network, they are more likely to persist and obtain a degree. Creating a support network within their program, rather than only through courses, could have a similar impact.
Next Steps
This discovery research highlights the importance of creating more personalized approaches to the student journey, especially for post-traditional learners like working adults. Though students are highly motivated to pursue their degrees, life circumstances may arise that impact their ability to continue. By offering more targeted solutions that account for these diverse student experiences, we have the potential to increase retention, course completion rates, and overall satisfaction with the student experience. This discovery phase of research confirms the need for future research with AI tools and program offerings.
At WGU Labs, we’ll leverage these findings as we continue to build more inclusive and accessible educational offerings to support learners with a variety of life circumstances that may prevent them from fully engaging in education.
Conclusion
This research underscores the complex and deeply personal challenges that adult learners face in their pursuit of higher education. While motivation remains high among students, external life factors often disrupt their progress, leading to breaks in enrollment and, in many cases, permanent disengagement. By examining students’ emotional states at key moments in their academic journey, we identified specific opportunities that could significantly improve persistence rates.
Our findings suggest that providing more flexible enrollment options, enhancing program mentor support through technology, and aligning assessments with real-world applications can create a more supportive learning environment. Additionally, shifting toward inclusive assessment strategies and fostering peer connections through cohort-based learning could further strengthen student engagement and long-term success.
As higher education continues to evolve, these insights provide a foundation for strategic improvements that prioritize student needs and experiences. Future research, particularly in the application of AI-driven solutions, will be critical in refining these touchpoints and ensuring that more adult learners can persist through challenges and achieve their academic and professional goals.
