After 32 years of being stuck in low-level jobs, Joan Morgan jumped at the opportunity to enroll in college when her employer offered her $1,000 for tuition.

Morgan (freshman-health policy and administration) said her employer at Fox Tail Retirement Homes gave her the chance to pursue a more desirable career by making a college education an option.

Morgan, 51, started at Penn State like any other freshman, with the First Year Testing, Counseling and Advising Program (FTCAP). She said college was intimidating at first and very different than she expected.

Students older than 24, who are veterans of the military, or who have been out of school for four years are considered adult learners at Penn State. Last year, 5 percent -- about 1,635 -- of the students enrolled at University Park were adult learners.

Mike Bowler, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences, said the number of students enrolling as adult learners is rising for a few reasons, among them because the opportunity to work at a blue-collar job has been decreasing.

Fourteen years after Jacqueline Vaux (senior-criminal justice and health policy and administration) graduated from high school, she decided to enroll as an undergraduate at Penn State.

Vaux, 34, said she left her job voluntarily because she wanted to earn a college degree, but was unsure how to balance class with work.

"I hated my job the entire time," Vaux said. "I had a desire to get a degree but didn't know how to manage."

Betsy Esposito, assistant director at the Center for Adult Learner Services, said the anxiety and fear of the unknown is very common in adult learners. Adult learners wonder if there is support, and often question their confidence, she said.

"I didn't have faith in myself at first," Vaux said. "I was thinking I could not compete with people who were straight out of high school."

Anne Rohrbach, Penn State admissions services and evaluation director, said SAT scores are not required for adult learners, but high school transcripts are necessary.

Vaux said that when she worked in a factory producing electronics, she had no additional work-related responsibilities. While at Penn State, she said she has a lot of reading, writing and homework but college has opened up many job opportunities that she was unaware of.

"As an adult student, I get annoyed with group work because I feel like sometimes they don't take it seriously," Vaux said. "I have young friends, but I don't go to their parties. I get invited, but don't go."

Vaux was named Outstanding Adult Student by the Adult Learner Services in 2005. She expects to graduate from Schreyer Honors College in spring 2006.

Bob Kratzer, an associate's degree candidate studying arts and sciences, said he came back to school to enhance his job and learn more about the field. Kratzer, 49, is an administrator for a government agency that monitors the effect of sewage on the ground.

Kratzer said the classes he's taking consist of mostly 18- to 24-year-old students who are better versed in math, writing and technology.

However, the challenges outweighed what he gained in the classroom, Kratzer said. He has already seen improvements in his field as well as in his writing skills.

Morgan hopes that like her, other adults will have the opportunity to enhance their education.

"I feel I can take advantage of everything Penn State has to offer, I don't have to just settle for bits and pieces," Morgan said.