Giving Compass' Take:

• Education Dive examines colleges and universities that are trying to accommodate the needs of "nontraditional" students, such as adult learners returning to campus who may not have the same advantages as their peers.

• For those involved in higher education support, it's worth looking at models such as Brandman University and how they are adapting to a changing climate. The key is knowing that one size does not fit all.

• Here's why higher ed needs to be less elitist to survive.

Brandman University President Gary Brahm says the needs of nontraditional students are very different than those of traditional students. And though there is some consensus that nontraditional is the new traditional, many institution leaders are still struggling with how to adjust their business models to accommodate this wave of students on traditional campuses.

A lot of institutions have leveraged their existing brand in order to deliver a traditional education as well as accommodate nontraditional students.

At Brandman, which serves a large military population thanks to its proximity to Marine Corps Air Station El Toro in Orange County, California, Brahm said the board and leadership team is “totally focus[ed] on the needs of nontraditional students.” As a result, 83% of non-first-time, full-time students and 63% of non-first-time, part-time students who enrolled in August 2008 received some type of credential by August 2016, according to U.S. Department of Education data. And Brahm is particularly proud of the school’s 5.5% default rate, which he says is much lower than other schools serving adult students.

Read the full article about nontraditional education by Autumn A. Arnett at Education Dive.