The Senior Citizen Education Program (SCEP) at the University of Minnesota allows Minnesota residents age 62 or older to audit courses for free or pay a $20 administrative fee per credit, according to One Stop’s website.

The program was implemented after a 1975 statute was passed — and since updated — requiring state-supported universities and colleges in Minnesota to allow senior citizens to enroll in courses based on available space after all tuition-paying students were accommodated. The statute mandates that seniors should be able to audit classes for free, and should only have to pay administrative fees for courses taken for credit.

Julie Selander, the Director of One Stop Student Services, said the administrative fee covers tuition but does not include costs for course materials. The fee increased this year from $10 to $20 per credit, which Selander said was in line with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

According to Selander, many students in the SCEP are pleasantly surprised to learn they can engage in campus life beyond the classroom by joining events and participating in student organizations.

“I think some of them are very, very excited to be part of the student experience and be on campus. I think they like that aspect of it,” Selander said.

The program has experienced significant growth with a 67% increase in student enrollment from 2013 to 2023, according to a data request to the University filed by the Minnesota Daily. 

When Bruce Center began auditing his first class through the SCEP in fall 2023 he ventured into a subject area outside his professional expertise, but the campus itself was hardly unfamiliar. 

Center graduated from the University with a doctorate in educational psychology in 1983 and taught several courses at the University “sometime in the previous millennium,” according to Center. He said the SCEP program has been a fun way to get involved in the University community again.

For his first course as a returning student, Center said he decided to take Introduction to Jewish History and Cultures with professor Natan Paradise. Being Jewish himself, Center said he was curious to learn more about Judaism to connect with his heritage.

Center said one of the reasons he enrolled in SCEP was his desire to interact with people face-to-face, especially in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging, 41% of older adults reported feeling a lack of companionship in 2020, which decreased slightly to 37% in 2023. 

The poll also found that 46% of older adults had infrequent contact (once a week or less) with people outside their household in 2020, compared to 33% in 2023.

Center said he has enjoyed engaging in discussions with his younger peers and has appreciated hearing perspectives that often differ from his own.

“It was a chance to engage with a lot of people who have a different perspective on life and who are, frankly, a lot more enamored of new and different ideas,” Center said.

Lisa Thornquist, a student in the SCEP, spent her entire higher educational journey at the University. She earned a doctorate in geography from the University, and since retiring from her position as a manager in the Housing Area of Hennepin County working on public policy related to homelessness, has taken full advantage of the SCEP.

Thornquist has audited seven courses within a wide range of disciplines, from Russian history to political science. Thornquist said she enjoys the freedom to delve into many subjects, especially topics she is unfamiliar with.

“I always liked school and there’s a million things to learn about in this world that I hadn’t had a chance to yet,” Thornquist said. “Taking classes at the U gave me the opportunity to take classes about things I know nothing about.”

During discussions, Thornquist said she enjoyed sharing her perspective with professors and students as one of the few people in the room who lived through those times and events before her classmates were born.

“A professor will talk about something that happened in the 1960s, or 70s or 80s, and then we kind of both look at each other and it’s like ‘okay, we lived through that,’ and looking around the class, certainly for (other students), that’s ancient history,” Thornquist said.

The Alzheimer’s Association looked at a 2015 study published in JAMA Neurology that suggests formal education, or education at the high school level or above, may serve as a protective factor against Alzheimer’s and provide individuals with the disease more time with better cognitive function.

John Robert Warren, a sociology professor at the University leading an upcoming study on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, said there is strong evidence that increased education may protect the brain against cognitive decline later in life.

Part of Warren’s research is on biological factors that can indicate someone is predisposed to developing Alzheimer’s or heavy cognitive decline later in life, specifically markers in the blood.

Although there is evidence that these blood markers correlate with cognitive problems, most people who have them do not experience any cognitive decline, according to Warren. It suggests there are other factors that go into determining whether someone will experience cognitive decline and to what extent with education potentially being one of them.

“Why are some people able to avoid having problems, even though they have the same biology as other people who do have problems?” Warren asked. “That seems to be shaped by education.”

Warren said while there is currently no evidence to show that engaging in educational activities later in life provides the same protection against Alzheimer’s for seniors, it remains a possibility. 

Regardless, Warren said learning later in life is still beneficial.

“There’s amazing evidence about the impact of things like loneliness on how the brain works,” Warren said. “Even if the knowledge they gain doesn’t really shape their brains, maybe it’s the social environment that would.”

Even if there are benefits to learning later in life, Warren said those who choose to participate in programs like the SCEP at the University might be the least likely to see any preventative effect against Alzheimer’s.

Warren said people who have a background of being in cognitively stimulating environments are at decreased risk of cognitive decline to begin with, but having developed a habit of lifetime learning, they may be more likely to decide to go back to school purely for the sake of learning than those who would reap greater benefits.

Mary Learmont, a University alumnus who recently retired from her job as a principal reliability engineer at Medtronic, is auditing her second course at the University through the SCEP and said she plans on continuing in the program for as long as possible.

“There’s just such a world of information out there. I feel like what I know is a tiny drop in a bucket, and this is just so enlightening,” Learmont said.

According to Learmont, one advantage of auditing courses instead of taking them for credit is the flexibility to choose your level of involvement. She said she appreciates being able to decide which assignments to complete, and while her work is not graded, she still receives feedback from her professors.

Learmont said she is very careful to make sure degree-seeking students receive the professor’s primary focus and lead the majority of classroom discussions.

“I want to make sure that I never take a student’s place. I don’t want to ever do anything to detract from the real students getting whatever attention they need,” Learmont said.

Lifelong learning benefits the world, Learmont said.

“In terms of being a better citizen of the world, the more that you keep learning, you become more open-minded,” Learmont said. “I think (education) makes you a better human being, better able to make a positive contribution in the world.”