A common practice in colleges and universities throughout the United States is to make verbal communication and class participation a requirement for academic success. However, for some students this type of verbal communication in the classroom can produce physical and emotional anxiety that can profoundly affect their ability to succeed in the academic arena. Research in the field of communication apprehension has been ongoing for many years with elementary, high school, and traditional aged college students. However, little research has been conducted on communication apprehension as it relates to nontraditional aged college students. For this study the research field of participants was narrowed down to nontraditional graduate students at Ohio University. Using face-to-face interviews and a Likert-type survey instrument over the course of two years this study revealed that the biggest obstacle in verbal communication for nontraditional graduate students at Ohio University is due to the lack, or perceived lack, of a graduate vocabulary. From this finding more research is encouraged to drill down to the root of this vocabulary barrier. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]