A part-time student is a

non-traditional student Nontraditional student is a term that refers to a category of students at Higher education, colleges and universities. The term originated in North America and usually involves age and social characteristics. Nontraditional students are contrasted ...

who pursues

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

, but will attend fewer class hours per semester than a full-time student, taking more years to complete their qualification; this is typically done after reaching

adulthood An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social an ...

, while living off-campus, and will often be done while carrying out responsibilities related to family and/or employment. Part-time student status is based on taking fewer course credits in a semester than full-time students. Part-time students may choose to pursue part-time studies for a variety of different reasons. A benefit of pursuing higher education as a part-time student is the opportunity to be able to balance learning with work, family and other personal commitments. Not every program will have the option for part-time students to enroll. The selection of programs that are available in a part-time format will vary depending on the institution. There is a lack of existing research that examines the experiences of part-time students in a higher education setting. However, it is known that when compared to full-time students, part-time students often feel less engaged, and as a result, part-time students have much higher attrition rates. It is recommended that

peer support Peer support occurs when people provide knowledge, experience, emotional, social or practical help to each other. It commonly refers to an initiative consisting of trained supporters (although it can be provided by peers without training), and can ...

networks that support part-time students are implemented at institutions as a way to increase students' engagement with the program of study, decrease feelings of isolation, and increase participation.

Australia

In Australia, 31.2 percent of students in 2008 were enrolled part-time. Between 2003 and 2008, while the number of students attending full time increased by 21.1 percent, the number attending part-time enrollments increased by only 2.5 percent. In 2022, there were over 10,000 part-time students in Australia, compared to over 4 million full-time students.

Canada

At Canadian higher education institutions, there are numerous undergraduate and graduate degrees, as well as diplomas, that are available on a part-time basis. Students in Canada may choose to pursue part-time studies for many different reasons. The reasons for choosing to pursue studies as a part-time student may include furthering one's education, advancing in a career,

professional development Professional development, also known as professional education, is learning that leads to or emphasizes education in a specific professional career field or builds practical job applicable skills emphasizing Praxis (process), praxis in addition t ...

, or simply the decision to pivot one's current life direction. In the year 2019, there were about 266,000 part-time students in Canada.

Definition by institution

In Canada, the course load that constitutes part-time student status varies between institutions. The

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

, for example, defines a part-time

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...

student as one enrolled in less than 80 percent of the standard 30 credit-hour course load. The

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

defines the part-time undergraduate student as an individual enrolled in less than 60 percent of the standard full 30 credit hour course load.

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a Public university, public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Ontario, Waterloo, Brantford, Ontario, Brantford and Milton, Ontario, Milton. The ...

in Ontario defines a part-time student as a student who is currently taking less than three half-credit courses in a semester.

Funding

The

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

national student loans program defines a part-time student as one who is enrolled in 20–59 percent of a full course load. http://www.canlearn.ca/en/Multimedia/nslsc/pdf/guides/CAN_PT_EN.pdf The Government of Canada offers funding to part-time students in the form of student grants and loans. The amount of funding that you are able to receive depends on many factors, including which province or territory you reside in, what your household income is, whether or not you have dependents, whether or not you identify as having a disability, and what your current tuition fees and living expenses are.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, while full-time students have been increasing, part-time student enrolment has been steady decreasing since 2009–2010. In 2011–2012, 31 percent of all enrolments were part-time, while in 2015–2016 part-time students consisted of 24 percent of all enrolments. Between 2011–2012 and 2015–2016 there was an overall 30 percent decrease of part-time students. In 2022-2023, there were 784,000 undergraduate students; of these, 140,000 were part-time students. In 2024-2025, there were 536,000 postgraduate students, and almost 240,000 of these were studying part-time.

Occasional student

Postgrads and some

mature students An adult learner—or, more commonly, a mature student or mature-age student—is a person who is older and is involved in forms of learning. Adult learners fall in a specific criterion of being experienced, and do not always have a high school di ...

may enrol in some centres as occasional students. This includes international students registered for a PhD in their own country, and scholars working professsionaly in the field of study.

United States

In the United States, the number of part-time students rose 16 percent between 2004 and 2014. In 2015, 23 percent of undergraduate students at 4-year institutions attended part-time, compared to 61 percent of students at 2-year institutions. In 2022-2023, 11.5 million students attended higher education full time, while 7.4 million attended part time. National Center for Education Statistics, ''Back-to-school statistics'', retrieved 20 February 2025
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References

Additional citations

* Andres, L., & Carpenter, S. (1997). Today's higher education students: Issues of admission, retention, transfer, and attrition in relation to changing student demographics. Centre for Policy Studies in Education University of British Columbia. Retrieved October 12, 2007 from:http://www.bccat.bc.ca/pubs/today.pdf * Billett, S. (1998). Ontogeny and participation in communities of practice: A socio-cognitive view of adult development. Studies in the Education of Adults, 30(1), 21. Retrieved September 15, 2008 from the Academic Search Elite database. * Campbell, D. (1984). The new majority: Adult Learners in the University. Edmonton: The University of Alberta Press. * Holt, N. (2003) Representation, Legitimation, and Autoethnography: An Autoethnographic Writing Story. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 2 (1) Retrieved September 18, 2008 from https://www.ualberta.ca/~iiqm/backissues/2_1/pdf/holt.pdf * Kozulin, A. (2004). Vygotsky's theory in the classroom: Introduction. European Journal of Psychology of Education - EJPE, 19(1), 3-7. Retrieved September 15, 2008 from the Academic Search Elite database. * Kroth, M. (2000). Life Mission and Adult Learning. Adult Education Quarterly, 50 (2). * McDonough, G. (2005). Moral maturity and autonomy: appreciating the significance of Lawrence Kolhberg's Just Community. Journal of Moral Education, 34(2), 199-213. Retrieved September 18, 2008 from the Academic Search Elite database. * Merriam, S. B., Caffarella, R., S., & Baumgartner, L., M. (2007). Learning in adulthood" A comprehensive guide (3rd Edition). San Francisco : Jossey-Bass. * Rennemark, M., & Hagberg, B. (1997). Sense of coherence among the elderly in relation to their perceived life history in an Eriksonian perspective. Aging & Mental Health, 1(3), 221-229. Retrieved September 18, 2008 from the Academic Search Elite database. * Russell, C. (1999). Autoethnography: Journey of the Self. Experimental Ethnography. Retrieved September 18, 2008 from http://www.haussite.net/haus.0/SCRIPT/txt2001/01/russel.HTML * Siegler, R., Ellis, S. (1996). Piaget on Childhood. Psychological Science, American Psychological Society, 7(4). Retrieved September 18, 2008 from the Academic Search Elite database. * Stydinger, N., & Dundes, L. (Spring, 2006). Over the Hill? A Nontraditional Undergraduate Student’s Uphill Battle. College Quarterly, 9(2). Retrieved September 16, 2007, from http://www.senecac.on.ca/quarterly/2006-vol09-num02-spring/stydinger_dundes.html

External links

A guide to part-time learning in higher education in the UKUniversity Guide'' Alternatives to full time studyAlternative education timetable''
A guide to part-time higher education
''Why Choose Part Time Study''
Why Choose Part Time Study Types of students Higher education