The University of Phoenix College of Doctoral Studies has released a new white paper titled “Engaging the Overextended: Designing Higher Education for Women Balancing Care, Work, and Learning.” The publication is authored by Jessica Sylvester, Ed.D., MBA, who serves as Senior Manager of College Operations and associate faculty member at the University. Sylvester is also a research fellow with the Center for Educational and Instructional Technology Research.
The white paper examines how current higher education models often assume students have uninterrupted time and predictable schedules. According to Sylvester’s analysis, these assumptions do not reflect the reality faced by many women who manage caregiving responsibilities, employment, and education at the same time.
Drawing from findings in the 2025 University of Phoenix Career Optimism Special Report Series: Moms in the Sandwich Generation, as well as related research, Sylvester links workforce challenges to student engagement and persistence. The report notes that 59% of mothers in this group say their combined roles have limited professional growth, 51% have left jobs due to caregiving conflicts, and 62% feel maintaining a career is a luxury—factors that affect whether they can start or continue their education.
“Engagement is a design problem, not a motivation problem,” said Sylvester. “When institutions build learning around real life—flexible time structures, authentic welcoming, recognition of lived expertise, and thoughtful AI-enabled support—women who are balancing care, work and learning can persist and succeed without having to choose between family and future.”
The white paper offers practical strategies for higher education leaders and policymakers to better serve overextended learners through life-aligned program design.
University of Phoenix provides higher education options designed for working adults across the nation with both online offerings and a physical campus in Phoenix. The institution emphasizes flexible learning approaches tailored to underserved communities and offers more than 100 career-focused programs linked to over 300 professions according to its official website. Since its founding in 1976, it has aimed to address barriers to education while holding accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission since 1978.
The full white paper is available on the University of Phoenix Career Institute webpage or on its Research Hub.
