In short
If you are the first in your family to go to college, you probably did not hear about half of what other students know without thinking: when to look for summer work, that professors expect you at office hours, that you can ask whether a role is paid. This is sometimes called the hidden curriculum. None of it is secret, and none of it measures how bright or hard-working you are. It is unwritten, and this guide writes some of it down.
What "first-generation" means
Colleges define it a little differently. Some mean that neither parent finished a four-year degree; some mean neither parent attended college at all. If your college has a first-generation office or program, they will tell you which definition they use. You do not need to qualify under a definition to use anything in this guide.
Things people assume you already know
Start early. The best-known summer programs open the autumn before. The year at a glance in when things open shows the usual months for your field. If you are reading this in the spring and find you are late, it is not too late for many places; see your first internship.
Asking is normal. People who do work you are curious about expect to be asked about it, and most of them remember being the one who asked. A short note to someone you have never met is a routine thing to send; the cold email guide shows how.
Office hours are for you. Professors hold them for students who are doing fine as well as students who are stuck. Go twice a term with one question about the subject. Two years later that professor will be able to write you a letter that sounds like it was written by someone who knows you, because it will be.
The career office is not only for seniors. Go in your first year. They read résumés, run practice interviews, know which employers visit, and often know about money for students whose summer work is unpaid. Appointments are free.
You are allowed to ask whether it is paid. "Is this role paid, and at what rate?" is a plain question and a fair one. An unpaid offer deserves a closer look; the first internship guide says what to look for.
Email your professors like this. "Dear Professor Okafor," then who you are and which class, one clear question or request, and your name. If you do not know whether to say Professor or Dr., say Professor.
"Business casual" and "smart casual" are not defined anywhere. A fair rule for a first interview: dress one step more formally than the people you expect to meet. Ask the recruiter, "Is there a dress code I should know about?" Nobody minds.
What you already have
You may be good at things that other students are not. If you have worked while studying, translated for family, managed money for a household, or looked after siblings, you have already been trusted with real responsibility. Employers want people who can be counted on. Say so plainly, with numbers, on your résumé and in interviews: "worked 20 hours a week during the school year while carrying a full course load" tells a reader a lot.
You may also be asked "what do your parents do?" or "where did you go to school?" in the way people ask each other at events. Answer however you like. There is nothing to apologize for, and you can change the subject.
Money
Money is allowed to matter. Some things worth knowing:
- Your financial aid office can answer questions about your award, and in many cases adjust it if your family's situation changes. Ask early; offices are busier in August.
- FAFSA. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid opens each autumn for the following year. The deadline calendar lists it. Colleges and states set their own earlier dates, so check yours.
- Emergency funds. Many colleges have small grants for sudden costs: a laptop that broke, a bus pass, a plane ticket home. Ask the dean of students' office. Asking is what they are for.
- Summer funding. Some colleges keep money for students taking unpaid summer work. The applications have deadlines, often in March or April.
- TRIO. Many colleges run federally funded TRIO programs, such as Student Support Services, for first-generation and lower-income students. They offer advising, tutoring and sometimes small grants. Search "TRIO" on your college's website.
None of this is advice about your own situation. Your financial aid office is the right place for that.
Feeling out of place
A great many first-generation students describe a nagging sense that everyone else got a manual and they did not. You did not get one. That is a fact about the way information travels, not about you. A few things help:
- Find one or two older students who started where you did. Your college's first-generation program or a campus club is a good place to meet them.
- Treat questions as a normal part of every week. Keep a running list of terms you did not understand and look them up, or ask. The glossary here is a start.
- Tell one professor what you are hoping to do. You may be surprised at what they know.
One good week
If you do nothing else this week:
- Open when things open and read the column for the field you are most curious about. Write down the next date.
- Book an appointment with your career office.
- Send one note from the templates to one person who does work you might want to do.
That is a good week, and the next one is easier.