First Generation College Students

“First In My Family”

Characteristics and Issues Facing First Generation College Students

Michelle Allen, Kinsely Baker, Christianne Beavers, Rebecca Avant

First-Generation College Students: A Definition

For this presentation, a first-generation college student refers to one who neither

parent has attended college. (Demetriou & Mann, 2011)

First-Gen Students within Racial /Ethnic Groups

I(

Since 1975, African Americans show the greatest decline; Hispanics are the most likely first-gen’s. (Higher Education

Research Institute, 2007)

Parents=A Very Important Reason to go to College

• Parents’ encouragement is a very important reason for both non-first-gen and first-gen students to attend college.

• In 2005, the trend had reversed and showed first-gen students (47%) had reversed a trend over non-first-gen students (43%) for parental encouragement being very important in the choice to attend college.

(Higher Education Research Institute, 2007)

Family Influence

• Hsiao (1992) stated that “parents, siblings, and friends who have no experience of college or its rewards may be non-supportive or even obstructionist.”

• May begin journey alone.– First-generation students face the risk of alienation from

family if they decide to attend college (Striplin, 1999).

• Balancing two cultures: – Family and friends who have no college experience vs.

being immersed in culture of attending college

Family Influence

Bryan & Simmons (2009), found that first-generation college students do not

receive the same levels of support from their families as continuing-generation

students, largely because of the family’s lack of knowledge about postsecondary

education.

Family Influence • Support– Unconditional, Direct, and Indirect

• Understanding– Lack of Knowledge from Parents

• Motivation– Personal vs. Family

• Goal Achievement – Personal vs. Family

• Expectations– Either Higher or Lower Expectations

Study conducted by Alexa Hodge, supervised by Dr. Elizabeth Mellin

Work Experiences and Expectations

• Over half (55%) of first-generation college students expect to get a job to pay for college expenses.

• First-generation students considered financial factors very important to college choice.

• They were also more likely to have worked while in high school than non-first-generation students.


I

Perc

ent

Figure 3. Work Experiences & Expectations 60 5 5 .1

5 0 First-Generation

Non-First-Generation

4 0

41.5

36.7

4 5 .0

3 0 26.0

2 0

20.8

2 2 .2

1 5 .0

1 0

0

1987 2005 1987 2005 Worked 20+ hours per week in

last year of HS Very good chance: Expect to get a job to pay for colle

Home: An Important Influence

• First-gen’s are likely to attend institutions within 50 miles from home• Close proximity an

important reason for choice

• Less likely to live on campus

• Potentially less academic and social integration• Decision for close

proximity driven by financial reasons


First-Generation College Students are more likely to:

• be older• have lower incomes• be married• have dependents• enroll part-time• choose a two-year

institution• choose a private, for-profit

school• take remedial classes• say that they wanted to

become more well-off and able to provide for their children

• persisted and earned degrees at a lower rate

• earned as much if a degree is obtained…….

as compared to non-first generation students.• (National Center for

Education Statistics, 1998)

Financial Obligations and Barriers

Compared to traditional students, Terenzini’s

(2005) findings indicated that first-generation

students were more likely to:

Come from low income families

Have more dependent children

Have weaker reading, math, and critical thinking

skills

Expected to take longer to complete their degree

programs

Financial obligations and barriersStudents often feel guilty that they cannot contribute financially to their homes because of their commitment to their education

• FAFSA process:– Families are often confused about the process

of applying for federal financial aid, which opens the door to grant and scholarship availability

– Application is extensive and convoluted, and requires sensitive data

Financial Obligations and BarriersHow do these challenges affect the college

experience?

– Low-income families have less to contribute to their student’s college costs

Less family financial support leads to an increased likelihood of working while in school

More time working = less time in the classroom or for studying

Academic skills

First-generation students are often less prepared academically than non-first-

generation students and have an elevated risk for academic failure (Terenzini, 1995)

Academic skills

Compared to traditional students, Terenzini’s (2005) findings

indicated that first-generation students were:

Had received less encouragement from their parents to attend

college

Tended to take fewer courses in the traditional fields and more

courses in technical and pre-professional courses

Spent fewer hours studying and more hours working

Were less likely to perceive faculty members as concerned with

student development and teaching

Had less involvement with peers and teachers in high school

Have lower degree aspirations

More likely to require developmental coursework (Hodges, 1999)

Academic Skills

How do these challenges affect the college experience?

Have weaker reading, math, and

critical thinking skills

Poor performance due to lack of skill development and lack of understanding/taking advantage of campus resources

Loss of financial aid, feelings of frustration and helplessness to the point of quitting

Academic skills

What can we do to academically support this

population?

Institutions must provide an array of programs and

services to counteract the weaknesses and obstacles

many of them face (Hsiao, 1992)

– Methods and resources to navigate the bureaucratic

nature of higher education institutions

– Specialized outreach, tutoring, and mentoring programs

– Bridge programs (for example- high school to college)

– Effective orientation programs

Campus Programming

• Roughly 30% of entering freshmen in the USA are first-generation college students

• 24% — 4.5 million — are both first-gens and low income.

• Nationally, 89% of low-income first-gens leave college within six years without a degree.

• More than a quarter leave after their first year — four times the dropout rate of higher-income second-generation students.

First Generation College Students

• Universities implement programs aimed at the Retention, Progression, and Graduation (RPG) of FGCS–Mentoring programs– Tutoring– Social Activities– Cultural Immersion activities

Georgia Southern University’s Minority Advisement Program

• The Minority Advisement Program (MAP) is a unique college mentoring/success program for minority incoming students (a.k.a. MAPees) that match freshmen and transfer students with upperclassmen to assist with their acclimation to college life.

Campus Programming

The Federal TRIO Programs (TRIO) are Federal outreach and student services programs

designed to identify and provide services for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds.

TRIO includes eight programs targeted to serve and assist:• low-income individuals• first-generation college students• individuals with disabilities

to progress through the academic pipeline from middle school to postbaccalaureate programs

Continued…

• ETS-The goal of Talent Search is to increase the number of youth from disadvantaged backgrounds who complete high school and enroll in and complete their postsecondary education.

• Upward Bound- Serves high school students from low-income families; and high school students from families in which neither parent holds a bachelor's degree.

• Most students transition from ETS and Upward Bound into the Ronald McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement Program

“The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living differ from the dead.”

― Aristotle

QUESTIONS???

ReferencesBryan, E., & Simmons, L.A. (2009). Family involvement: impacts on post-secondary educational success for first-generation Appalachian college students. Journal of College Student Development, 50(4), 391-405.

Demetriou. C., & Mann, A. (2011). Encouraging first generation college student success. Academic Advising Today, 34(2). Retrieved from http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Academic -Advising-Today/View- Articles

Hodge, A. E. (ND). First-generation college students: The influence of family on college experience. (Master's thesis)Retrieved from http://forms.gradsch.psu.edu/diversity/mcnair/mcnair_jrnl2010/files/Hodge.pdf

Hsiao, K. P. (1992). First-generation college students. ERIC Digest, ED351079.

Higher Education Research Institute. (May 2007). First in my family. HERI Research Brief. Retrieved from http://academics.lmu.edu/media/lmuacademics/academicresourcecenter/documents/First%20

Generation%20Research%20Brief%20copy.pdfMulticultural Student Center. Minority Advisement Program. Retrieved April 2013. http://deanofstudents.georgiasouthern.edu/multicultural/mentoring/minority-advisement-program-map/

National Center for Education Statistics. (June 1998). First generationstudents whose parents never enrolled in postsecondary education.Retrieved fromhttp://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=98082

Terenzini, P. T. (1995). First-generation college students: Characteristics, experiences, and cognitive development. Proceedings from Forum of the Association for Institutional Research. Washington, D.C.

Striplin, J. J. (1999). Facilitating transfer for first-generation community college students. ERIC Digest, ED430627.

U.S. Department of Education. Trio Programs. Retrieved April 2013 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/index.html

http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=98082

