Adult learners, who comprise over half of all students in higher education, are typically part-time students in transition and present special challenges to colleges and universities. These students are primarily seeking to improve their situation through education, and their commitment to self-improvement dictates a different set of aspirations and expectations as compared to traditional students. National Center for Educational Statistics projects that in 1998, of all higher education students, 71.55 percent will be part-time adult learners. This has compelling policy, curriculum, financial, and administrative implications for institutions. To meet the special needs of this population institutions should provide academic counseling, academic support services, mentoring, convenient class location and scheduling, and cocurricular activities. The many services now available to adult students are typically accessible through a bureaucratic maze. Services centralized at a student affairs office could be organized around eight functional areas: specialized services; advocacy; referral; networking and mentoring; education (e.g., life skills training); clearinghouse that links students to campus services and resources; program planning; and counseling. Curricula for adult learners should include individual planning and active, problem-solving, goal-oriented, and cooperative learning. Teacher education programs have targeted adult learners in transition. Growth in continuing education is in the areas of computer training, human resource management, and quality control. Institutions will be wise to respond to the needs of adult learners in curricula; faculty development programs; administrative procedures; and counseling and support services. (JB)