Claire Ami, Emily Pack, Lynn Reed

“I Didn’t Know College Would Be Like This”

Tools For New Advisors Working With First

Generation College Students

Claire Ami, Emily Pack, Lynn Reed

"If a seed of a lettuce will not grow, we do not blame the lettuce.

Instead, the fault lies with us for not having nourished the seed properly." - Buddhist proverb

Learning Objectives• Participants will create an action plan to further

enhance their skills in working with first generation students

• Participants will identify and list skills they can apply directly to their practice

• Participants will identify their current level of competence in working with first generation students

Six Cultural Competence

Stages of Advising1. Non-Awareness of Difference

2. Awareness of Difference

3. Acceptance/Acknowledgement of Difference

4. Understanding Cultural Difference

5. Cultural Adaptation

6. Intercultural Skillfulness

SEE HANDOUT ONE

Self AssessmentUsing the Advisor

Competence Stages, reflect on your perceived level of

competence in advising first generation students.

Who is a First Generation Student?

First generation students are defined as students not

having a parent who graduated from college with a

baccalaureate degree

Numbers of First Generation Students?

• The first-generation student makeup – 30% of the U.S. college population– 24% — 4.5 million; both first generation &

low income– Nationally, 89% leave college within six

years without earning a degree– More than a quarter leave after their first

year, four times the dropout rate of higher income second generation students

Common Characteristics• Balance of Cultures

• Lower Social Economic Group

• Older Students

• Family is Central

• Part Time Students

• Underprepared Academically

• English Not Always First Language

• Commuter Students

• Less Involved with Campus Activities

Advising Tools to Use• Consider group advising• Involve parents• Have students create a time log and share it with

their families• Create a credible advising environment—consider

how your office décor and bookshelves reflect your commitment to diversity

• Be aware of language choice during advising sessions

• Start an appointment by relationship building, not asking what a student’s major is

SEE HANDOUT TWO – PART ONE

Advising Tools continued• Practical Ways To Assist First Generation Students

– Develop Positive Friendships

– List Important Dates

– Develop a Contact List

– Use Technology to Help Students

– Use all Campus Resources

– Help Students Persist• Serve as an advocate

• Assist them in maneuvering and learning the campus

SEE HANDOUT TWO – PART TWO

Model of O’BanionAdvising is Designed as a Top Down Approach

Exploration of Life Goals

Vocational Goals

Program ChoiceCourse Choice

Class Schedule

SEE HANDOUT THREE

Appreciative Advising• Discover

– Ask students questions targeted at eliciting their strengths and passions.

• Dream– Use positive, open-ended questions to help uncover

students' hopes and dreams

• Design– Develop both short- and long-term goals to accomplish the

students’ dreams.

• Destiny– Give the advisee space and support to accomplish the goals

SEE HANDOUT FOUR – PART ONE

Intrusive Advising• Definition

– Intentional contact with students to develop a caring and beneficial relationship that leads to increased academic motivation and persistence

• Make first contact– Do not expect advisee to approach you

• Have lunch with advisee• Act as a student advocate when necessary

SEE HANDOUT FOUR – PART TWO

First Generation Student Case Study #1

John is a first-generation, low-income, first-year college student raised in a single-parent home

in South Central Los Angles. He scored exceptionally well on his SAT and received a

scholarship to attend an Ivy League school on the east coast. John’s high school student body

was primarily Latino and African American, so college is his first experience being part of a

racial/ethnic minority group. He has never lived away from home and has no family or friends

that live on the east coast. Furthermore, most of John’s friends did not graduate from high

school. Although the financial aid and scholarships he received are substantial, they are still

not enough to cover all his expenses. John also needs to send money home to help his mother

support his siblings. Therefore, he will have to work part-time to make ends meet. John feels

lost and isolated in college because it seems that no one understands the challenges he faces.

He has no idea whom he can turn to for advice about college life or his future aspirations of

attending graduate school. SEE HANDOUT FIVE – PART ONE

Case StudyGroup Discussion

1. What are some resources that you as the advisor have to give to John to help his transition from Los Angeles to the east coast?

2. If John decides not to attend the Ivy League university what other options does he have available in Los Angeles?

3. What groups or organizations would you suggest for John to get involved with at the university so he doesn’t feel so isolated?

SEE HANDOUT FIVE – PART ONE

First Generation Student Case Study #2

Maria’s family moved to the United States from Ecuador when she was in high school.

She has had an easier time than her family adapting to life in a different country. Her

parents still speak primarily Spanish and use it at home to communicate with their

children. While her English comprehension hasn’t been enough to keep her from

graduating high school she does face a challenge as she moves into college. Maria is in

the first semester of her freshman year and she has been visiting you in academic

advising as part of a program to assist first generation students. She started off the

semester excited about her classes and as the weeks have gone by she has become

more and more quiet. When you finally get her to warm up about how college is going,

she explains that she is stressed. She is not doing as well as she thought she would in

her classes. She is also dealing with several family pressures at home.

SEE HANDOUT FIVE – PART TWO

Case StudyGroup Discussion

1. What suggestions do you have for Maria?

2. What strategies might you use for discussing options with Maria?

SEE HANDOUT FIVE – PART TWO

AssessmentFacebook Group:

ReflectionPlease reflect on what you

learned today…

Create an action plan using the skills you have learned today that you will take back to your office

and put into ACTION…

Questions

References• Earl, W. R. (1987). Intrusive advising for freshmen. Retrieved

October 22, 2006, from

http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Clearinghouse/AdvisingIssues/Intrusiv

e-Freshmen.htm

• Folsom, P. & Chamberlain, B. (2007). The New Advisor

Guidebook: Mastering the Art of Advising Through the First Year

and Beyond. NACADA: Monograph Series No. 16.

• Harding, B. (2008). Students with specific advising needs. In V.N.

Gordon, W.R. Habley, & T.J. Grites (Eds.), Academic Advising: A

Comprehensive Handbook. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 

References• Kocel, K. (2008). Advising First-Generation College Students for

Continued Success. The Mentor: An Academic Advising Journal.

Retrieved from: http://www.psu.edu/dus/mentor/080312kk.htm

• Peters, L. (2007). Practical Ways We Can Assist First Generation

Students. Academic Advising Today, 30(3). Retrieved from:

http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/AAT/NW30_3.htm#11

• Thomas, Earl Preston., Farrow, Earl Vann., & Martinez,   Juan.

(1998). A TRIO Program's Impact on Participants Graduation

Rates: The Rutgers University Student Support Services Program

and Its Network of Services. The Journal of Negro Education , Vol.

67, pp. 389-403.