Who are First-Generation Students?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\nAccording to the Ball State University Fall 2022 Student Profile, of our 13,516 enrolled undergraduate students, 4,701 indicated that they were first-generation college students. This means that approximately 35% of the current undergraduate students<\/a> at our university<\/strong> are the first in their families to navigate the waters of higher ed. But who are these students?<\/p>\nHonestly, answering this question from Ball State data of first-generation students is a challenge, and it merits a deeper dive. However, by looking at existing research and literature about the subject in general, we can begin to draw deeper conclusions about this portion of the student population.<\/p>\n
In their scholarship, \u201cBreaking Down Barriers: Academic Obstacles of First-Generation Students at Research Universities,\u201d<\/a> authors Michael J. Stebleton and Krista M. Soria provide one such profile of first-generation students, basing it on previous research studies. In their profile, they emphasize that first-generation students are \u201cmore likely than their non-first-generation counterparts to have additional characteristics that may serve as a disadvantage as they pursue their college education\u201d (8). Specifically, they have a greater likelihood of:<\/p>\n\n- being older<\/li>\n
- coming from minority backgrounds<\/li>\n
- having a disability<\/li>\n
- being non-native English speakers<\/li>\n
- being single parents<\/li>\n
- being financially independent from their parents<\/li>\n
- having lower levels of academic preparation<\/li>\n
- frequently needing to be employed to help pay for education and cost-of-living expenses<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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The challenges faced by first-gen students are reiterated by Noel et al. in their article, <\/span>\u201cDepressive and Anxiety Symptoms in First Generation College Students,\u201d<\/span><\/a> where the researchers connected these obstacles faced by first-generation students to the increased presence of anxiety symptoms. They posit that one connection between these first-generation challenges and anxiety is stress, specifically \u201cacculturative stress,\u201d which is stress \u201cexperienced during the cultural adaptation process\u201d (5). Put simply, characteristics of first-generation students can create obstacles as students try to adapt to the culture of higher education, and the stress of those obstacles can create an increased likelihood of anxiety symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\nIntersectional Obstacles\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\nA critical issue is the way in which these myriad challenges compound and layer upon one another. As an example, Stebleton and Soria explain that \u201cfirst generation students may have both job and family responsibilities in addition to weak study skills\u2014factors that, when combined, may cause even greater challenges to reaching their goals\u201d (13).<\/p>\n
This intersectionality is echoed by Rashn\u00e9 Jehangir, an associate professor of higher education and founding director of the First Gen Institute at the University of Minnesota<\/a>, in a conversation from Inside Higher Ed<\/em><\/a>. Jehangir points to the need for more specific institutional data on first-generation students, asking \u201cTo what extent do our own programs and campuses intersect data on first-gen students with other social identities like race and\/or social class?\u201d This intersectionality underlines the hidden complexity of the first-generation experience. For many first-generation students, their identity as first-generation is only one of potentially many marginalized identities.<\/p>\nAnd this last point is the one that caught me off guard the most when I began researching this topic. In academia, there is always a risk of thinking about our first-generation students purely in terms of academics\u2014how do we help them with university resources, how do we help them develop study skills, how do we help them acclimate to and navigate the complexities of the academy, etc. However, as this research seems to indicate, there\u2019s more to a first-generation student\u2019s identity beyond academics and there\u2019s more to the obstacles before them than just their family\u2019s academics.<\/p>\n
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Honestly, answering this question from Ball State data of first-generation students is a challenge, and it merits a deeper dive. However, by looking at existing research and literature about the subject in general, we can begin to draw deeper conclusions about this portion of the student population.<\/p>\n
In their scholarship, \u201cBreaking Down Barriers: Academic Obstacles of First-Generation Students at Research Universities,\u201d<\/a> authors Michael J. Stebleton and Krista M. Soria provide one such profile of first-generation students, basing it on previous research studies. In their profile, they emphasize that first-generation students are \u201cmore likely than their non-first-generation counterparts to have additional characteristics that may serve as a disadvantage as they pursue their college education\u201d (8). Specifically, they have a greater likelihood of:<\/p>\n The challenges faced by first-gen students are reiterated by Noel et al. in their article, <\/span>\u201cDepressive and Anxiety Symptoms in First Generation College Students,\u201d<\/span><\/a> where the researchers connected these obstacles faced by first-generation students to the increased presence of anxiety symptoms. They posit that one connection between these first-generation challenges and anxiety is stress, specifically \u201cacculturative stress,\u201d which is stress \u201cexperienced during the cultural adaptation process\u201d (5). Put simply, characteristics of first-generation students can create obstacles as students try to adapt to the culture of higher education, and the stress of those obstacles can create an increased likelihood of anxiety symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n A critical issue is the way in which these myriad challenges compound and layer upon one another. As an example, Stebleton and Soria explain that \u201cfirst generation students may have both job and family responsibilities in addition to weak study skills\u2014factors that, when combined, may cause even greater challenges to reaching their goals\u201d (13).<\/p>\n This intersectionality is echoed by Rashn\u00e9 Jehangir, an associate professor of higher education and founding director of the First Gen Institute at the University of Minnesota<\/a>, in a conversation from Inside Higher Ed<\/em><\/a>. Jehangir points to the need for more specific institutional data on first-generation students, asking \u201cTo what extent do our own programs and campuses intersect data on first-gen students with other social identities like race and\/or social class?\u201d This intersectionality underlines the hidden complexity of the first-generation experience. For many first-generation students, their identity as first-generation is only one of potentially many marginalized identities.<\/p>\n And this last point is the one that caught me off guard the most when I began researching this topic. In academia, there is always a risk of thinking about our first-generation students purely in terms of academics\u2014how do we help them with university resources, how do we help them develop study skills, how do we help them acclimate to and navigate the complexities of the academy, etc. However, as this research seems to indicate, there\u2019s more to a first-generation student\u2019s identity beyond academics and there\u2019s more to the obstacles before them than just their family\u2019s academics.<\/p>\n\n
<\/p>\nIntersectional Obstacles\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n