Maggie First generation college student

A little recap : A look at the life of a first-generation college student at a glance.

Over a few week, with my posts, I have shared my story about the struggle and resources available to first-generation college students. Now let us take a look at how these posts come together. In one picture, I will show you my life as a first-generation college student and how the cycle runs. The life of a first-gener can be tough but when we share our story, it helps others make the best out of the stress.

The life of a first-generation can be tough, I know this firsthand but with the right resources I pulled through it. What is your story at a glance? What else can a first-gener do to make our lives more stress-free? Please like, comment and share your thoughts.

Maggie First generation college student

Family and peer support for first-generation college students.

a graphic statistic of how high school graduates/college freshmen perform academically based on the educational background of their parents.
Courtesy : educationweek.com/blog

In my previous posts, i talked about the struggles first-generation college students and the resources available to them. A challenge for first-geners is the lack of parental support academically. Parents of first-geners are not able to help with financial aid process and admission process. I had a hard time getting around things in my first year. It was worse as an immigrant; i started my college education a few months after getting into the country.

In the absence of that parental support, peer support goes a long way to help. Faculty and advisors are great resources as i mentioned in my last post, but a peer is less formal. It gives room for more conversation and helps with knowing how to maneuver things from a student’s perspective. Peer support can be study groups, clubs or student organizations. These peer support can help us first-geners feel connected to a community.

In my first year in college, choosing classes was based on the advice of my academic advisor and peers. I was part of a club and the topic for one of our meetings was the choice of classes. Students in their sophomore and junior years gave advices on which classes to take or which professors to sign up for based on their personal experiences. This helped me a lot especially since i was undecided and could choose any classes i wanted. They became my informal rate my professor website.

From my freshman to senior year, my academic advisors have always used students as a reference in choosing classes; especially my core classes. When i was looking for classes to make up for my 72-hours credit outside of my major, i chose some of my classes because of the statement “I heard a lot students like this class or professor so the class fills up very fast” from my advisor. Because of these factors, i loved all my classes and did well in them.

Even though parents of first-generation college students do not have the needed knowledge to help their children, they can still help in their little way. Motivating and checking up on their children can be effective to help first-geners. My mom is a great inspiration in my college journey. Although she has no idea of how college works, it never stopped her from checking up on me every week to ask me how I was doing and how my classes are going.

Since my first year in college, my mother has been involved in finding out how i am faring in college and how each process, whether financial aid or academic progress, works. This has helped with my younger siblings. She is able to help my younger siblings with any college-related questions when i am not available.

Peers can be mentors for students, especially first generation students with little or no support from families. Families can also stay involved in the college journey of their children; they can be a good resource for other children yet to go to college. Do you know other ways peers or families can help first-geners? Please drop a comment and let’s get interactive.

Maggie First generation college student

Resources available to first-generation college students

In my previous blog, I talked about the struggles of first-generation college students. Lack of knowledge of resources, reason for going to college, financial struggles, low self-esteem and no parental guidance. The life of a first-generation college student can be stressful. But with the right resources and guidance, the stress of such a title can be history. There are a lot of resources available to first-geners, but most of us are not aware of these resources until our third year in college. I never knew of the resources available to me as a first-generation college student till the second semester of my junior year in college.

1. Financial aid: It may seem like an obvious resource because it is available to all students. However, the Pell Grant is based on household income. I know whenever I fill out my FAFSA, my parent’s educational background is a key to it. I believe based on my parent’s education, the income of the household can be determined. I believe if my mom had an advanced educational background, her income would be higher than what it is now. She would have had a better paying job which I believe determines what I get from the government. I would probably get a lower grant amount if she had a higher income. Some schools offer grants to first-generation students aside the grant from the federal government.

2. Scholarships: I didn’t have enough information about this till last semester. There are indeed scholarships specifically tailored towards first-generation college students. Many colleges, including Kent State, have scholarships for first-geners. One has to make the necessary research. Aside colleges, corporations such as Coca-Cola and Mercedes have scholarships for first generation college students. I found about this while doing research for this blog, if I knew what I know now, it would have been of great help to me. This part semester, I applied for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication scholarships. In my application, I was asked if I was a first-generation college student; I received a scholarship from JMC. I was thrilled because it helped me financially in cutting costs. I wonder if my status as a first-gener had anything to do with it, but I believe it did.

3. Teachers/Advisors: In my first year of college, at Ohio Dominican University, I built a close relationship with my admission and academic advisors. That relationship helped me in focusing on why I was in college in the first place. Even though, I had already started classes, I visited my admission advisor on a regular basis, mostly to chitchat and talk about my classes. Through such conversations, I got a job on campus when he realized I had a huge gap between classes and I could need the money. In my first year I was undecided, and I wished that was a major on its own because I had no clue what I wanted to do. I also did not want to pick a major based on my parent’s desires. Every time I went to see her, she was concerned about my indecision. To help me, she asked me about my background and past experiences and how that has shaped my life. I took an online assessment test and I had to choose between Public Relations and Psychology.

4. Career Planning Opportunities: Colleges offer career planning opportunities either with networking events or a department on campus. Here at Kent State, the Career Explorations Development Center is a great resource for students. I have never utilized its services but I had to interview staff of the department for a class; I realized it had great resources I could have benefitted from especially in my sophomore year. Aside college resources, there is a national resource provided by the U.S Department of Labor. This resource is a free assessment tool to help students especially first-geners in career and job training.

There are a lot of other resources, it is available through research and asking questions. I benefitted from some of these resources, but wish I knew more from the very beginning. Do not be afraid to ask questions. Please do share your thoughts on these resources or other resources you know about. And please subscribe and let’s get interactive.

Maggie First generation college student

Struggles of being a first-generation college student

image stating i'm first with a graduation cap, first generation college student
COURTESY: Insighthigheed.com

College at last; Jane is excited to start the life before the real world and be the first to get into college as well as graduate from college. It is all excitement till the semester starts and things start to get tough. She has so many questions but she cannot ask her parents because they have no idea of the college life.

Jane is not the only person in this boat, there are hundreds of first-generation college student who struggle to figure things out. First of all, a first-generation college student is a student who is the first to gain admission and graduate from college. The parents never went to college and is the first child in the family to go to college. Here are the 5 stress horrors first-generation college students face.

  1. The main reason for going to college: Most students go to college with an agenda in mind; to be a medical doctor, journalist or politician. For most first-generation college students, that decision is not always easy. With parents having a degree, the decision can be easy as some students would want to follow the footsteps of their parents. But some first-geners go to college to honor their parents and be the first to go to college. I know how that feels because i felt that pressure in my first year of college.
  2. No parents to rely on: From elementary to high school, relying on parents for resources and assignments is a normal routine. But college is a different ballgame when parents have no experience. The idea of being away from home and coupled with not being able to depend on them is hell. Our parents are the first people we think of when issues pop up.
  3. The Stigma/Low self-esteem: One sure thing is to be able to survive, you have to ask questions. Some students become ashamed of always asking questions when others seem to have it all together. Some choose to be invisible and as a result do poorly academically. Some may possibly drop out of college due to self-doubt and low self-esteem. They feel they cannot make it through college on their own and do not want to be asking for help at all times.
  4. Financial constraints: One task of being a first-generation college student is to rely on oneself and pay for things. Parents cannot always be there and the need to get money for pay for books, gas and grocery becomes an issue. Then there is the need to work to support oneself. Working and schooling can be a disastrous recipe. Working can be a distraction and a hassle. In my first year of college, i was a full-time student and worked at the same time. It was stressful figuring out school stuff without my parents’ help and work to help with things i need without asking my parents.
  5. Lack of knowledge of existing resources: Most first-geners do not know how to go about their first year in college. Because they are the first to go to college, they have no older siblings or parents to guide them on how college life works. Also, they are not aware of the resources available to them to serve as a guide. Thus, they face anxiety and stress in the first or first two years.

It can be a hassle as a first-generation college student, but every problem has a solution. Being was stressful till i found a way to get over it and thus be an expert for my younger siblings. Share your story if you are a first-generation college student or know someone who is a first-gener.