Before we began the interview, 36-year-old Carleton student Bryan Minnery wanted to make one thing clear: “There isn’t a specific mature student profile.”
Minnery’s university story began 13 years ago at Carleton.
The first time around, Minnery said he dabbled in physics and environmental studies because they seemed like pragmatic degrees.
“But at the time I wasn’t in the right mindset from a personal level," he said.
After leaving Carleton, Minnery said he traveled and took a job in Japan, where he lived for 10 years.
Upon his return, he said he had two reasons for going back to school.
“One, I wanted to do it,” Minnery said. “And two, whatever experience I have had in the workforce didn’t translate well without a degree.”
Minnery started again at Carleton this January in the political science program (he earned second year standing because of his previous credits), and said he is okay that his path to education hasn’t been a direct one.
“I wouldn’t have traded [those experiences] for the world, but I did regret leaving school,” he said.
As a result, being a 36-year-old student has its ups and downs, he said.
One thing Minnery notices is the disconnect with younger students.
“I’m very social so I’d like to approach a person beside me,” he said. “But from their perception, they’re at a different level in life, and it’s hard to connect.”
On the flip side, though, he said he is more comfortable approaching a professor.
It’s as if you can approach them as equals, he said.
Nevertheless, it is a very different experience and it’s easy to become isolated, Minnery said.
But events — Minnery mentioned the recent Islam Awareness Week — do help. “I think that’s a really good part of being in school,” he said. “Those are things you should pay attention to, to diversity, because just studying isn’t enough.”
This learning process is something Minnery said he’s come to understand as a mature student.
“I think as undergrads it’s easy to become discouraged,” he said. “Now there’s more to juggle, but there’s also more motivation to make it work.”
And discovering the Bill Ellis Centre for Mature and Part-time Students has been helpful, Minnery explains.
At the centre, “everybody knows they’re in the same situation and that creates a comfort zone,” he said. “You experience people going through similar things and it really adds to your perspective.”
Minnery concluded by saying that being mature student means putting in extra effort.
“University is a very individual and independent thing, but at the same time, you never want to be studying in a vacuum.”