Much of the persistence of low-income, first generation college students literature focuses on deficit models: the obstacles and limits this population encounters in their college experience. Few scholars examine strategies and behavior leading to achieving a college degree. This study utilizes an anti-deficit approach to identify the resiliency…

This study explored the ways Latinx-based organizations assist students in navigating college and career preparation. Data consist of in-depth interviews with 17 first-generation Latinx students attending two predominantly White institutions in the Midwest. I employed Bourdieu's social reproduction theory to examine the ways Latinx student…

First-generation (FG) college students often confront cultural mismatches between their interdependent backgrounds and university contexts that promote independent norms. Past work has documented this mismatch with various methodologies (e.g., self-report, lab experiments, longitudinal designs), but behavioral explorations have been minimal. Thus,…

This study explored the perceived barriers and supports related to college adjustment for first-generation college students at a large public university in the southeastern United States. Using social cognitive career theory as a framework, 15 college students participated in focus groups to discuss their adjustment to college and what they…

Low-income and first-generation students face several academic and social obstacles that prohibit them from entering college. These barriers include poor academic performance, limited knowledge of the college admissions process, lack of family and peer support, and financial illiteracy. The purpose of this study was to uncover former Upward Bound…

Higher education today faces a host of challenges, from quality to cost. But too little attention gets paid to a startling fact: four out of ten students -- that's more than ten percent of the entire population -- who start college drop out. The situation is particularly dire for black and Latino students, those from poor families, and those who…

Enrolling in and completing college can be especially challenging for first generation in college (FGC) students. The purpose of the present quantitative study was to investigate the demographic and academic characteristics of FGC students and non-FGC students in Alabama. The study also included identifying the factors that mediate FGC students'…

In the United States, colleges and universities have not promoted the academic success of their students of color as effectively as their White students (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2016). While much research has been conducted to explore how racism impacts higher education attainment of Black/African American and…

Higher education institutions are faced with pressure to graduate more doctoral students, but universities are faced with an increasing population of doctoral students who identify themselves as first-generation; however, there is not much known about this specific population as well as other generational students (i.e., second and other…

Course-based undergraduate research is promoted as an equitable strategy for providing the benefits of research experiences to a larger, more diverse population of students pursuing science degrees. Here, we report the impacts of course-based research on the self-efficacy and future goals of students enrolled in introductory biology courses at a…

This study was conducted with first-generation students (FGS) at a moderately selective, large public research university in the Midwest. At the time of this study, the participating campus enrolled about 43,700 undergraduates, approximately 11% of whom were FGS. To conduct this study, the authors administered a campus environments survey to all…

Undergraduates' distress has increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic's onset, raising concerns for academic achievement. Yet little is known about the mechanisms by which pandemic-related distress may affect students' learning and performance, and consequently, how we might intervene to promote student achievement despite the continuing…

Low-income, first-generation students complete college at disproportionately low rates compared to their higher-income and continuing-generation peers. Actors across federal, state, and institutional levels have developed a wide variety of support programs to increase the retention and graduation rates of this group, and typically measure program…

Undergraduates' distress has increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic's onset, raising concerns for academic achievement. Yet little is known about the mechanisms by which pandemic-related distress may affect students' learning and performance, and consequently, how we might intervene to promote student achievement despite the continuing…

Drawing on data from the Strategic National Arts Alumni Project (SNAAP) internship module fielded in 2015-2017, this report offers several key findings related to historical changes and emerging forms of inequality in the intern economy. In addition to illuminating these findings, this report offers an important addendum to the 2015 SNAAP report…