This study examined the characteristics of class activism in a community college as demonstrated by single mothers, first-generation students from peripheral regions. Building on theories of class and intersectionality, we wished to understand the ways in which single mothers conceptualize their experience in academia, as individuals and as a…

This interpretive qualitative study of 17 first-generation college students (FGCSs) in the U.S. uses parent-generated familial capital as an asset-based framework to recognize the various ways that parents contribute to their undergraduate students' career development. Six themes illustrate parental contributions: facilitating students' access to…

The relationship between career counselling and widening participation is increasingly capturing the attention of educational researchers, especially those interested in its social justice implications. International research on first-in-family students demonstrates the continual class-based barriers they are faced with which influence their…

University spaces can be experienced as unfamiliar and anxiety-inducing by working-class students. Early difficulties adjusting to university can lead to attrition. This article draws from a larger study examining the experiences of first-in-family (FIF) girls in one Australian city as they transition from secondary school into their first year of…

While it has been shown that university attendance is strongly predicted by parental education, we know very little about why some potential first-generation students make it to university and others do not. This paper looks at the role of non-cognitive skills in the university participation of this disadvantaged group in England. We find that…

This article explores how first-in-family-graduate Roma and non-Roma Hungarians from the working-class experience education-driven social mobility and reconcile the dislocation of their primary-habitus due to changing class through transiting a "third space." Drawing on Bhabha's and bell hooks' development of this concept, we aim to…

Female students, Latinx students, first-generation students, and transfer students often feel uncomfortable in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) environments. However, some departments have been making progress in changing that. Guided by double consciousness and person-environment fit theory, we investigated the lived…

Latinxs are the second largest racial-ethnic group in the United States, yet they make up only 7% of all doctoral degree recipients. Latinx undergraduates are predominantly first-generation college students, who often have limited professional networks to guide their pathways into graduate school. Drawing on interviews with 25 first-generation…

Earning a bachelor's degree or work certificate can close social equity gaps and increase social mobility and economic stability in American society. Barriers exist to upward mobility for underrepresented groups (first-generation, low socioeconomic, African American, and Hispanic). Underrepresented students are falling below their peers in…

The purpose of this qualitative narrative inquiry is to explore how first-generation community college students perceive major and career goals, the factors that impact career decision-making and the development of key employability skills. It is important to understand how to develop or promote programs that can help expose students to various…

When do students start the college planning process? How many plan to take the SAT or ACT? How much do they value a college degree? RNL and Halda surveyed more than 2,200 high school students to answer these and many other key questions. Read our 32-page college planning report and discover a wealth of findings on: (1) when students start to…

While international students' experiences of academic bullying from their advisors have been documented in the literature (e.g., Moss & Mahmoudi, 2021), little is known regarding how race and other identities intersect in normalizing and perpetuating academic bullying within higher education. Utilizing Asian critical theory (Iftikar &…

Within the last decade, scholars of color have researched and advocated for better support for first-generation, Latine students, in particular through the critical analysis of the impact of the campus racial climate (Franklin et al., 2014; Huerta & Fishman, 2014; Hurtado & Alvarado, 2015; Kouyoumdijan et al., 2017). These reimagined…

This article describes a qualitative study with seven first-generation college graduates who went on to complete graduate school and are now working in colleges and universities as counselors and counselor educators. The findings highlight the resources that these participants possessed that contributed to their college success stories.…

Internships are helpful tools for college students to gain valuable work experience that increases their employability. While applying online is an option, the best inroads into internships are through personal connections made available through social capital. First-generation college students who have limited networks may lack the social capital…