85 Years of Evolution: How National American University Continues to Adapt to Working Adults

by Imed Bouchrika, PhD

Co-Founder and Chief Data Scientist

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For many working adults, earning a bachelor's degree is not simply a question of whether to go to college. It is a question of how to fit college into an already full schedule. Trellis Strategies' 2025 Spotlight Report found that 67% of undergraduate respondents work for pay, while 43% of working students work at least 40 hours per week. For students balancing employment, family, and school, the structure of a degree can matter almost as much as the subject they study.

National American University (NAU) has spent 85 years adapting its educational model to changing student needs. Its evolution has included career-focused education, online learning, specialized professional programs, and now reduced-credit bachelor's degrees designed for completion in approximately three years.

Key Findings

From a business college to an institution built around changing career needs

NAU's history began in 1941 as National College of Business, but its educational focus has expanded considerably since then.

As the workforce and professional education landscape changed, NAU expanded beyond its original business curriculum and developed programs designed around specific career fields. The university also became an early adopter of online education, eventually transitioning to an online model that allows students to pursue degrees from locations across the country.

That evolution matters for working adults because access to education involves more than where classes are held. Students who work full time may need programs that accommodate schedules that do not resemble those of traditional college students. Online delivery can remove the need to commute to campus, while career-focused curricula can help students concentrate their coursework around a particular professional direction.

Why NAU expanded into strategic security education

NAU's addition of the Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security extended its programs into specialized professional education.

The school offers education in areas including intelligence management, strategic security, and related fields serving military, government, public-sector, and private-sector professionals. Its development also reflects a broader need for specialized knowledge in cybersecurity and intelligence.

A 2024 program proposal from the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education noted that the National Security Agency advertised for 3,000 new cybersecurity and intelligence positions in FY2023 and another 3,000 in FY2024. This trend suggests that cybersecurity and intelligence education have become increasingly prominent areas of higher education.

For prospective students, however, workforce demand is only one part of the decision. A specialized degree still needs to align with the student's intended career path, preferred area of study, and long-term education plans.

Rethinking the four-year bachelor's degree

NAU's latest change addresses a different part of the college experience: how much education is required to earn a bachelor's degree.

Traditional bachelor's programs are often structured around four years of study. For working adults, that timeline can create a significant practical commitment. Each additional term can mean continuing to balance tuition, work schedules, family responsibilities, and other obligations.

NAU's FOCUSED bachelor's degrees take a different approach. The programs are designed around 135 quarter credits rather than the 180 quarter credits required by NAU's traditional bachelor's programs. They also contain approximately 30 courses compared with about 40 courses in the traditional structure.

FOCUSED programs use fewer open electives and concentrate more coursework around the major and selected focus area. The model is designed so that a full-time student can complete the degree in approximately three years, although actual completion time can vary based on course load and transfer credits.

What does the FOCUSED model offer working adults?

FOCUSED bachelor's degrees are designed specifically around the circumstances of working adult learners.

All FOCUSED bachelor's programs are 100% online, allowing students to complete their coursework without attending a physical campus. 

The programs require 135 quarter credits, compared with 180 quarter credits for NAU's traditional bachelor's degrees. They also include approximately 30 courses rather than about 40. The curriculum uses fewer open electives and concentrates more coursework around the student's major and selected focus area.

NAU currently offers FOCUSED Bachelor of Science degrees in four fields:

• Information Technology, with focus areas in cybersecurity, network administration, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence
• Management, with focus areas in finance, human resources, IT management, marketing, and operations management
• Criminal Justice through the Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security, with focus areas in corrections, criminal intelligence analysis, criminal investigation, juvenile and victim justice, law enforcement and administration, and private security and protection
• Strategic Security and Protection Management through the Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security, with focus areas in cognitive warfare and information operations, conflict and consequence management, counterterrorism, intelligence management, protection management, and strategic security

The programs are designed so that a full-time student can complete a bachelor's degree in approximately three years, although actual completion time can vary based on course load and transfer credits. 

NAU is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, and FOCUSED programs award Bachelor of Science degrees through the university.

If you are looking for more flexibility when to start college, there are several bachelor’s degree programs with multiple start dates.

What should students consider before choosing a three-year bachelor's degree?

A shorter completion timeline can be useful, but the number of years alone should not determine whether a degree is appropriate.

Working adults should look beyond the advertised completion time and examine how the curriculum fits their goals. Several questions can help:

• Does the degree include the subject areas and focus area needed for the intended career?
• Does the curriculum provide the technical or professional preparation the student expects?
• How much flexibility does the program provide if work or family obligations change?
• How will previously completed college coursework affect the remaining requirements?
• Does the degree provide the academic foundation needed for any future graduate or professional education?
• Is the online format compatible with the student's preferred learning style and schedule?

These questions are particularly important for reduced-credit programs. Fewer required credits can reduce the amount of time and coursework needed, but students should understand what the curriculum includes and how it differs from other bachelor's degree structures.

The right comparison is therefore not simply three years versus four. It is the actual curriculum, credit requirement, delivery format, focus areas, transfer-credit policies, and career relevance of each program.

NAU's latest step in a longer process of adaptation

NAU's FOCUSED bachelor's degrees represent another stage in an institutional evolution that began with a business college in 1941 and expanded into career-focused, online, and specialized professional education.

The underlying issue is increasingly relevant to working adults. When students are already spending substantial time at work, the traditional structure of higher education may not always fit neatly into their lives. NAU's response is to reconsider the number of credits and courses required for selected bachelor's degrees while concentrating the curriculum more closely around a major and focus area.

References:

• Bista, K. (2026). Citing Trellis Strategies' 2025 Spotlight Report on undergraduate student employment.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2024). Employment-population ratio 22.5 percent for high school students, 44.3 percent for college students. https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2024/employment-population-ratio-22-5-percent-for-high-school-students-44-3-percent-for-college-students.htm

• South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. (2024, March 28). BA in Cyber Threat Intelligence: New program proposal. Coastal Carolina University. https://che.sc.gov/sites/che/files/Documents/Meetings/2024/ACAP/March%2028/4.G.CCU%20New%20Program%20BA%20Cyber%20TI_ACAP.pdf