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Findings highlight basic needs insecurity, limited access to support and financial resources, uneven availability of aid and services, and the role of coaching, information access, and engagement. Student voices describe barriers, motivations, and implications for equitable policy change.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/what-students-want-students-experiences-and-the-implications-of-enhanced-holistic-supports-for-non-degree-pathways/586033/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/what-students-want-students-experiences-and-the-implications-of-enhanced-holistic-supports-for-non-degree-pathways/586033.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Jordan Avery","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-06","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",7,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What is a non-degree credential in this brief?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"A non-degree credential is any postsecondary credential beyond a high school diploma, below an associate degree, conferred after completing one or more credit-bearing or noncredit courses and/or an evaluation of skills. It includes items such as certificates, industry certifications, apprenticeship certificates, occupational licenses, badges, and micro-credentials.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"Why are holistic supports essential for non-degree program quality and equity?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Holistic supports—services and resources that help meet basic needs like food, housing, and child care, and that help students navigate educational and career choices—are portrayed as essential to quality experiences. They are especially important for adults, students of color, student parents, and others facing structural barriers to opportunity.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What kinds of barriers do students pursuing non-degree pathways face?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"The brief highlights basic needs insecurity and limited access to support and financial resources. It also describes uneven access to financial aid and public benefits, along with challenges such as child care, transportation, and lack of information or help accessing available resources and coaching.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},586033,1792190217,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":102,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},8,30,"research-report",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":121},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":125},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":111,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145,"preview_page_count":4},1099523882367,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_9964176cb1d06d4a9deccf72a44ae3dc","WHAT STUDENTS WANT  \nStudents’ Experiencesand the Implications of Enhanced Holistic Supports for Non-Degree Pathways  \nContents  \n2 Introduction  \n4 Key Findings  \n4 What Students Experience  \n4 What Students Want  \n5 The Landscape of and Need for Holistic Supports among Students Pursuing Non-Degree Education Pathways  \n5 Basic Needs Insecurity is a Fact of Life for Many College Students  \n7 Students have Limited Access to Support and Financial Resources  \n8 Holistic Supports are Critical for Non-Degree Program Quality and Equity  \n9 Learning from Students about Their Experiences with Non-Degree Pathways  \n9 Students Are Highly Motivated to Build a Better Life for Themselves and Their Families and View Non-Degree Pathways as a Way to Achieve Their Goals  \n1 1 Students Experience a Postsecondary System That is Not Set Up for Them and which Forces Hard Choices between Goals and Family  \n13 Students Have Uneven Access to Financial and Holistic Supports  \n13 Financial Aid and Assistance  \n14 Public Benefits  \n14 Child Care  \n15 Transportation  \n15 Information about and Help Accessing Available Resources  \n15 Academic and Career Coaching  \n16 Student Engagement and Leadership Opportunities  \n1 7 Centering Student Voices: What Students Want and Implications for Policy and Systems Change  \nCentering the experiencesand expertise of students who have gone through non-degree programs and pathways is critical to developing policy that effectively and equitably promotes credential attainment and economic mobility.  \nWhat Students Want: Students’ Experiences and the Implications of Enhanced Holistic Supports for Non-Degree Pathways  \n1  \nIntroduction  \nCommunity colleges are a popular postsecondary option among today’s students, who include working adults, students of color, first-generation college students, immigrants, parents, and family caretakers. In addition to offering associate degrees, community colleges also offer affordable, flexible non-degree programs that result in career-oriented credentials. High-quality, non-degree programs and credentials can offer people affordable and relatively fast opportunities to earn skills and credentials that can open doors to good jobs and pave the way for further educational attainment. These programs tend to be more flexible and adaptable to people’s lives, and can often be stacked together along career pathways, presenting opportunities to advance education and career goals without the significant investment of time and resources required by traditional degree programs.  \nDEFINING A NON-DEGREE CREDENTIAL  \nA non-degree credential is defined as any postsecondary credential beyond a high school diploma (or its equivalent) that is below an associate degree. Non-degree credentials are conferred after successful completion of one or more credit-bearing or noncredit academic or training courses and/or an evaluation of skills.1 These credentials validate that a set of competencies or skills have been adequately mastered by the credential holder. They include certificates, industry certifications, apprenticeship certificates, occupational licenses, badges, and micro-credentials.2  \nToday’s students are pursuing postsecondary credentials to make a better life for themselves and their families in a higher education system that was not designed to meet their needs. Students in non-degree programs often face obstacles that make it hard to finish, even though these programs  \nare shorter, more flexible, and less expensive than degree programs. The roadblocks they face are often the result of outdated policies that do not reflect the realities of today’s students. Access to holistic supports—meaning services, resources, and assistance that help people meet their basic needs, like food, housing, and child care, and understand and navigate their educational and career choices—represent an essential component of a quality postsecondary experience, especially for adults, students of color, student parents, and","cbCaip8M41pj9IHr","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaip8M41pj9IHr","pdf",10174348,28,"English","# Introduction\n# Key Findings\n## What Students Experience\n## What Students Want\n## The Landscape of and Need for Holistic Supports among Students Pursuing Non-Degree Education Pathways\n## Centering Student Voices: What Students Want and Implications for Policy and Systems Change","[{\"question\":\"What is a non-degree credential in this brief?\",\"answer\":\"A non-degree credential is any postsecondary credential beyond a high school diploma, below an associate degree, conferred after completing one or more credit-bearing or noncredit courses and/or an evaluation of skills. It includes items such as certificates, industry certifications, apprenticeship certificates, occupational licenses, badges, and micro-credentials.\"},{\"question\":\"Why are holistic supports essential for non-degree program quality and equity?\",\"answer\":\"Holistic supports—services and resources that help meet basic needs like food, housing, and child care, and that help students navigate educational and career choices—are portrayed as essential to quality experiences. They are especially important for adults, students of color, student parents, and others facing structural barriers to opportunity.\"},{\"question\":\"What kinds of barriers do students pursuing non-degree pathways face?\",\"answer\":\"The brief highlights basic needs insecurity and limited access to support and financial resources. It also describes uneven access to financial aid and public benefits, along with challenges such as child care, transportation, and lack of information or help accessing available resources and coaching.\"}]","WHAT STUDENTS WANT - Students’ Experiences and the Implications of Enhanced Holistic Supports for Non-Degree Pathways | PDF",1792056692,71]