U of Phoenix accepts younger students: online school opens its portal to 18-yeor-olds

University Business, Sept, 2004

Younger working students can now opt for an alternative to the traditional college experience via the University of Phoenix. The online university previously offered degrees and certificates to older, working adults. Now it has lifted age restrictions to allow all working students aged 18 and over.

While the university isn't targeting younger students, it does believe there is interest among this demographic. "Removing our age restriction was not a marketing decision," says university President Laura Palmer Noone. "It was a decision based on the changing demographics of college students." It's not uncommon, she says, to find 18-year-olds holding down substantial jobs, many of who have an interest in getting a college education. "We're obviously not going to appeal to every 18-year-old," says Palmer Noone. "What we have done is increased the pool from which we can draw students."