Despite our focus on traditional students, non-traditional students, many of whom work part-time, represent a large and growing share of students, particularly in subbacalaureate programs. Rick Hess of AEI draws attention to our failure to adequately serve this population:

Slightly over half of today’s students are seeking a “subbacalaureate” credential (i.e. a certificate, credential, or associate’s degree). In 2008-09, postsecondary institutions conferred 806,000 certificates and 787,000 associate’s degrees, or a total of about 1.59 million, as compared to 1.6 million bachelor’s degrees. In 2008, more than half a million students were enrolled in a health sciences certificate program, making it the largest certificate program area. Another 173,000 students sought a certificate in manufacturing, construction, repair, and transportation. While public discourse often focuses on four-year degrees, these other credentials matter, a lot.
There are plenty of good jobs that don’t require a four-year degree. After all, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that two-thirds of the labor force has less than a four-year degree, including nearly half of those in professional occupations and one-third of those in management roles. It pays for workers to earn these credentials; according to the BLS, that workers with an associate’s degree earned $141 more per week, on average, than those whose highest degree is a high school diploma.
But subbacalaureate programs continue to be regarded as marginal in the press and the higher education mainstream.

Late in the article, Hess identifies a small number of best practices that have emerged from institutions that aim to serve these students. This is a space where innovative higher education institutions, including for-profits, can really shine.