Designed for Adults, Driven by Students
At College Unbound, we break away from traditional higher education mechanisms. Created specifically for adult learners, our approach is built on two simple but powerful beliefs: students bring valuable knowledge and expertise gained from their lived experience, and students learn best when they drive their own education.
By centering the student experience around their personal and professional lives, College Unbound empowers learners to achieve their goals on their terms.
What Does "Student-Driven" Mean?
At College Unbound, students don’t just participate in their education—they help shape it. Every student develops a Personal Learning Plan (PLP) from day one that maps out their journey to earning a degree.
Instead of following a one-size-fits-all curriculum, students shape their academic path based on their professional aspirations, personal experiences, and real-world challenges.
We honor students’ lives, recognize the skills, knowledge, and experiences they bring, and build an education that moves them forward.
At CU, learning is seamlessly integrated with work and life.
The Big 10: Building Leadership and Real-World Change
At the heart of the College Unbound model are the Big 10 Transformational Leadership and Change Competencies—essential skills for thriving in today’s world and workplaces.
These competencies go beyond traditional academic knowledge to prepare students for leadership, problem-solving, and lifelong learning.
Big 10 Transformational Leadership and Change Competencies:
- Accountability (Upholding personal and communal expectations)
- Advocacy & Agency (Using your own power and building power with others)
- Collaboration (Facilitating teamwork)
- Communication (Relating your ideas to others)
- Creativity (Thinking like an artist)
- Critical Thinking (Investigating ideas)
- Equity & Justice (Navigating systems of power)
- Well-Being (Changing the world starts with ourselves)
- Lifelong Learning (Grasping the power of continued growth)
- Resilience (Carving your path through uncertainty)
Students apply these skills to real-world situations and develop portfolios that provide evidence of their experiences and personal reflections about the nature of their learning. Faculty use these rubrics to evaluate the Big 10 portfolios and award credit.
Real-World Assessment:
Measuring What Matters
Traditional education models often rely on exams and essays to measure success. At College Unbound, we are less interested in whether students have memorized course content and more interested in capturing the depth of students’ learning. Students have different learning styles, and learning takes many forms. With that in mind, we assess learning through a range of methods.
Learning in Public (LIP):
CU recognizes that valuable learning happens outside the classroom. Whether through work experience, caregiving, or community activism, students can earn credit by documenting and reflecting on what they have learned in these real-world settings. Like the Big 10, a portfolio-based learning approach assesses progress and awards credit.
Real-World Projects: Every student designs a project based on their interests and goals. Instead of final exams, students participate in exhibitions, where they present their progress and receive feedback to help them move their work forward. In fact, 66% of students have continued working on their projects after graduation.
Our approach ensures that students are assessed for what they know and how they apply it in meaningful, practical ways.
The Cohort Model: Support That Feels Like Community
Returning to college can feel daunting, especially for adult learners who balance work, family, and personal responsibilities. At College Unbound, students are never alone. Every learner joins a cohort—a group of peers who journey through the program together, offering support, collaboration, and a deep sense of community.
Moreover, each cohort has lab faculty who generally stay with them through graduation, functioning as more than faculty but as advisors and champions for each student.
Cohorts function as a community of support and a source of inspiration.
One student said, “It was surprising to see the overwhelming support you receive. You hear about it, but you wonder if it’s really going to happen. It does.” (K. S.)
Why It Works
The College Unbound model works because it redefines what higher education can be. By meeting students where they are, honoring their experiences, and giving them control over their education, CU provides an environment where learners can achieve what once felt impossible: earning a college degree without sacrificing their work, family, or personal lives.
The results speak for themselves:
Transformative Learning: Students leave CU not just with a degree but with confidence, leadership skills, and a vision for the future.
Accelerated Timeline: Most of our students graduate within three years on average.
Life-Changing Impact: Graduates report an increase of $13,000 or more upon graduation (2024).
At College Unbound, we believe education should be accessible, relevant, and deeply personal, supporting every student to learn, lead, learn, and thrive.
This is learning unbound.