I always knew I would go to university or college, but I was never sure what I was going to school for, since I had such a large variety of interests. I applied to an array of programs at a bunch of different schools, and was accepted into them all. (I made my choice based mostly on a campus visit that involved cotton candy and bubbles.)
I became the third person in my extended family to go to post-secondary education and the second to graduate; however, in my nuclear family I was the first for both. I am what is known as a first generation student (also called first gen or FGS): the first person in my immediate family to go on to post-secondary education.
With the number of students attending university and college on the rise in the last decade, the number of first gen students has increased as well. We fill an interesting demographic and face challenges that students whose parents have post-secondary education do not.
In general, first gen students often confront the following issues:
- Being confused by the application process
- No knowledge of academic expectations
- Use of confusing jargon by the institution
- Lack of information regarding support-systems on campus
- Coping with life as a post-secondary student
- Financial barriers
- Not having support of parents and family
- Guilt in regards to the post-secondary experience
- Higher dropout rates than traditional students
The hardest part for me was not having anyone to turn to. I knew nothing about choosing courses, how university experience worked, living in residence or what the university could offer me when I was applying.
I also did not know the benefits that some schools had over others, in terms of reputation, cost, location, transportation, programs offered, class sizes, supplementary fees and extra-curriculars. The only real form of guidance I had about Canadian universities was the annual publication from Maclean’s magazine.
My parents didn’t have any way to assist me in my choice; the only advice they could offer was from other parents to their children, which in many cases did not apply to me.
Once I made my choice, made it through Welcome Week and started my studies, I was once again inundated with unknowns. I sort of fumbled my way through, and more or less ended up OK (I’m still alive, aren’t I?).
But I faced another problem: the language I was comfortable using at university was completely foreign to my parents.
Things that became normative to me and my peers had to be explained to my parents, oftentimes more than once. They have become more familiar with terminology and practices as time has gone on, but there are still many things I do not think they understand.
I noticed my world progressively became more and more dissimilar to theirs. I can’t really say what will happen in the future in terms of my relationship with my parents, since I am not sure if I will pursue more post-graduate education.
But if I had gone straight into the workforce, I honestly believe our relationship would have been much different, as there would be more things I could relate to with them and vice versa.
Since I came to university, I have noticed that many colleges and universities now offer support programs to first gen students in terms of peer mentoring, financial assistance, orientation sessions and workshops during the academic year.
There has also been an influx of information about first gen students in academic literature, suggesting schools have recognized the impact felt by FGS in post-secondary education.
If you happen to be a first gen student, take advantage of the programs offered by your school. Such a program did not exist in my first year, but I wish it did. It likely would have helped me avoid some of those snags (and there were quite a few) in my first year.
A few years ago, I was a peer mentor for first year first gen students as part of the flagship year of the program. Not only did we face a lot of the same issues in our respective first years, but I was able to assist someone else in their transition into university life.
I know my mentee was grateful for the information I passed on to him, and he passed on his experiences to other first year students while being involved as a Community Advisor in the residence system.
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