Being Proactive as a Non-Trad Student

[switch]

For the sake of this hypothetical situation, ASSUME that ageism in graduate admissions is real. Basic assumption: ageism restricts the opportunities of older, non-traditional grade applicants.............

Given that assumption, what should and can non-trad applicants do to combat the ageism in grad admissions? What are successful strategies for overcoming, addressing, mitigating hte negative repercussions of ageism in graduate admissions?

Concrete steps we can take to improve the situation of older, non-trads..................

[Teelee]

I don't think age is really a factor, but if you want to be competitive against 22+ year old applicants fresh out of undergrad, I would say maybe taking few post bac classes to show your capability as a student to do well academically. There are graduate and/or undergrad courses that you can take online (for example Oregon state university - same rate per credit in or out of state tuition). Getting experience in relevant field and publishing papers? Not addressing the age issue too much during SoP because you are drawing more attention to that issue?