04/01/2026

First Gen Experience: Being a College Student as a Child of An Immigrant    

By Nevin Khalil   

Imagine it is your senior year of college. You are only four months from graduation, but you are exhausted. You are not only a student, but also a student worker, a sibling, and a major support for your parents. You did not live on campus due to financial and family reasons. As a result, you frequently arrive late to your first class. When you approached your professor to explain the situation, you were told that you should plan better to arrive on time. You felt defeated and did not know what to do or if there was support to help you.   

This story is just one example of the realities first-generation college students from immigrant families can face. These students assume a multitude of roles and responsibilities that other students may not carry. As a result, these students may feel overwhelmed when trying to discern their next steps (Leo, 2021). Career professionals need to be aware of the challenges these students encounter, the strengths they bring to institutions, and how to best support them.  

Challenges Faced by First-Generation College Students from Immigrant Families  

Navigating multiple life roles reflects what career theorist Donald Super defined as the Life Span, Life Space (Savickas, 1997). Students hold various roles throughout their lives, each with specific priorities and activities (Savickas, 1997). These roles (e.g., student, family member, worker) can overlap and influence one another. Many first-generation students from immigrant families often hold multiple roles at the same time, which can cause conflict and create pressure for students to navigate. Awareness can begin by recognizing some of the difficulties these students may deal with while on campus:

• Code Switching: Students may adapt language, tone, mannerisms, or appearance depending on whether they are with classmates, family, or teachers, often due to fear of judgment or a need to fit in (Pimenta, 2024).    
• Cultural Expectations: They feel pressure to succeed in school and secure a well-paying job to support their family financially or to do better. Many come to America to succeed and achieve opportunities they would not have had in their home countries (Zill, 2020).    
• Discrimination: While many students adjust quickly to new environments, they still can face bias based on accents, appearance, or cultural practices (Baum & Flores, 2011).    
• Impostor Syndrome: They may struggle with a deep sense of not belonging, whether in college, in the United States, or when comparing themselves to peers in America or relatives back home who they feel may deserve these opportunities more (Stebleton & Soria, 2012).     
• Mental Health Stigma: Students may deny or mask their mental health challenges because in many cultures, mental health is not discussed openly and may be seen as a weakness. This can make it harder for students to seek help (Stebleton & Soria, 2012).    
• Competing Job and Family Responsibilities: It can be difficult to balance work to help support their family, assist with family appointments, and manage household duties while also trying to complete homework and prepare for exams (Katrevich & Aruguete, 2017).    
• Poor Study Preparation: Many students come from under-resourced schools that did not provide strong academic foundations. With parents who did not attend college, they may also be unsure how to study effectively (Stebleton & Jehangir, 2019).  

These barriers can often surface in everyday responsibilities, such as helping their families understand important documents if English is not their first language, or losing valuable time while watching younger siblings. These students may also be overlooked or misunderstood by others on campus. They might hear comments like, “How did you not know that?” or get side-eyed for showing up late to class after working late or dropping off siblings at school. As the opening vignette illustrated, they may not receive empathy when they try to explain their circumstances to professors or others. 

Students who are trying to handle so many challenging responsibilities often have little time and energy for figuring out life after college.

Strength to Planning for the Future

Today, there are roughly 1.9 million first-generation students from immigrant families in college, according to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal (Feldblum et al., 2024). This number does not include international students. Many of these students are juggling family responsibilities and financial pressures that make planning for the future extra challenging. While some know exactly what they want, others are undecided, such as whether look broadly for employment opportunities or stay close to home to support their parents. Some wonder if graduate school is even an option (Leo, 2021).       

Perhaps because of these challenges, these students have incredible power to face the future. Many do not always recognize the potential they carry to navigate an unknown future. The skills they have developed will help them in the long run (Yasso, 2005). Skills such as time management, resilience, translation, emotional intelligence, and adaptability are more valuable than they think.  

Their potential can be seen in the first-generation students from immigrant families who have launched many Fortune 500 companies and received multiple Nobel Prizes (American Immigration Council, 2024; Dizikes, 2022; National Foundation for American Policy, 2019). These contributions reflect the broader presence of immigrant-origin students in higher education, who made up 1 in 5 students in 23 states and District of Columbia in 2022 (Feldblum et al., 2024). Immigrant-origin students also represented 35% of all graduate and professional school enrollment in 2022 (Feldblum et al., 2024). In 2024, 123 Fortune 500 companies were founded by children of immigrants (American Immigration Council, 2024). With all this potential and proven success, the question remains: How can career service professionals better support first-generation students from immigrant families?    

How to Support First-Generation Students from Immigrant Families   

Career development professionals are encouraged to begin the task of supporting students by considering any assumptions you might have. Do not assume students understand how to navigate the culture of higher education. Remember, everyone’s experience is different. Be willing to explain things clearly and patiently. Second, keep in mind, that to these students, family means everything. Do not dismiss its importance when students are figuring out their career paths; many are simultaneously managing academic uncertainty, work demands, and significant family responsibilities (Leo, 2021). Third, no question is too small or silly. If a student feels comfortable enough to ask, it means they trust you. Honor that with a respectful answer. Fourth, promote and create designated programs for first-generation students, including defining what first-generation means and providing accessible resources (Katrevich & Aruguete, 2017). Lastly, most important, continuously validate the student’s strengths and offer support, especially in a time where hostility towards immigrants is rising (McConnell, 2025). Supporting students fosters belonging, persistence, and adaptation in college, which in turn can lead to success (Costello et al., 2018).   

A Promising Future

Overall, first-generation college students from immigrant families face a complex path, but their resilience and skills are powerful tools for success. By understanding their experiences and offering meaningful support, career service professionals can help turn students’ challenges into opportunities. Together, the field can ensure students do not have to navigate this journey alone and can unlock a future filled with promise.    

References   

American Immigration Council. (2024, September 9). New American fortune 500 in 2024. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/report/new-american-fortune-500-2024/ 

Baum, S., & Flores, S. M. (2011). Higher education and children in immigrant families. The Future of Children, 21(1), 171–193. https://doi.org/10.1353/foc.2011.0000     

Costello, M., Ballin, A., Diamond, M. R., & Gao, L. (2018). First generation college students and non-first-generation college students: Perceptions of belonging. Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, 8(12), 58–65. https://doi.org/https://www.sciedupress.com/journal/index.php/jnep/article/view/13574     

Dizikes, P. (2022, May 9). Study: Immigrants in the US are more likely to start firms, create jobs. MIT News. https://news.mit.edu/2022/study-immigrants-more-likely-start-firms-create-jobs-0509 

Feldblum, M., Russell, F., Ramos, M., & Kantor, C. (2024). Immigrant origin students in U.S. higher education. Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration. https://www.higheredimmigrationportal.org/research/immigrant-origin-students-in-u-s-higher-education-updated-august-2024/ 

Katrevich, A. V., & Aruguete, M. S. (2017, April). Recognizing challenges and predicting success in first-generation university students. Journal of STEM Education, 18(2), 40-44. https://www.jstem.org/jstem/index.php/JSTEM/article/view/2233/1856     

Leo, A. (2021). Aspiration and opportunity: First-generation immigrants and refugees at Community College. Community College Review, 49(4), 435–456. https://doi.org/10.1177/00915521211026680     

McConnell, M. (2025, May 13). Communities continue to stand by immigrants amidst fear, heightened enforcement. American Immigration Council. https:/www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/communities-stand-by-immigrants-fear enforcement/    

National Foundation for American Policy. (2019). Immigrants and nobel prizes: 1901–2019. https://nfap.com/studies/immigrants-and-nobel-prizes-1901-2019/ 

Pimenta, L. I. (2024, July 24). 4 unique challenges first-gen immigrant children face (and how to overcome them). Althea Therapy. https://www.altheatherapy.com/post/the-struggles-of-first-generation-children-of-immigrants     

Savickas, M. L. (1997). Career adaptability: An integrative construct for life-span, life-space theory. Career Development Quarterly, 45(3), 247–259. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.1997.tb00469.x    

Stebleton, M. J., & Jehangir, R. R. (2019). A call for career educators to recommit to serving first-generation and immigrant college students: Introduction to special issue. Journal of Career Development, 47(1), 3–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845319884126     

Stebleton, M. J., & Soria, K. M. (2012). Breaking down barriers: Academic obstacles of first-generation students at research universities. Learning Assistance Review, 17(2). https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1002281.pdf  

Yosso, T. J. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. Race, Ethnicity, and Education, 8(1), 69–91. https://doi.org/10.1080/1361332052000341006 

Zill, N. (2020, July 8). How do the children of immigrant parents perform in school? Institute for Family Studies. https://ifstudies.org/blog/how-do-the-children-of-immigrant-parents-perform-in-school     

Nevin Khalil, CCSP, is the Associate Director of the Career Center at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania and formerly served as a Diversity Career Specialist at Penn State Harrisburg. She earned her CCSP certification in summer 2025 and has a background in the mental health field, supporting diverse and vulnerable populations. As a first-generation college graduate from an immigrant family, she is passionate about supporting underrepresented students in higher education. Nevin may be reached at NSKhalil@ship.edu.