In terms of both dollars and number of participants, the scope of postcompulsory or lifelong learning in the U.S. is extensive. This report enumerates the number of participants in each lifelong learning program, estimates the cost of each program, indicates its funding sources, and describes program participants' demographic and economic characteristics. In 1980 an estimated 50 million persons participated in lifelong learning; 42 percent were in postsecondary educational institutions (including four-year, two-year, vocational, proprietary, and correspondence schools), where they accounted for 71 percent of all lifelong-learning hours. The other 58 percent of participants were in noninstitutional education or training programs given by elementary or secondary schools, businesses, unions, professional associations, prisons, the military, federal, state, and local governments, religious or cultural groups, and tutors. The programs cost over 50 billion dollars, of which 60 percent came from public sources. Data concerning age, race or ethnic group, sex, employment status, and family income of learners when combined with the information on costs and numbers of participants, suggest that present public funding is unevenly distributed and that easing administrative and financial barriers would increase participation in the critical noninstitutional education and training area. (Author/RW)