Blog
Find advice and follow the college experiences of our current first-gen student bloggers.
How a Simple Conversation Changed Everything
Entering my first year of college, I was dead set on being a political science and music double major. I figured putting my two favorite things in high school together would ultimately be the best idea. When I received my schedule for my first semester, however, I...
Do Differently
The chronicles of life as a sophomore in college.
Intro: Beyond Face Value
I would have to say, getting asked to write a blog post about my own experiences to share with people around the world was a pretty thrilling experience. All of my life I have struggled with the idea of people only looking at me at face value. Before I begin I would...
Why is it important that you have a solid group of friends in college?
As expected, the first few weeks have been a challenge of adaptability, but I write this from the comfort of a new place where I find peace and happiness. As I have mentioned before in other blog posts, this senior year my friends and I are living in a house not so...
What’s it like being a senior?
Years: How has your perception of college changed over the last couple of years, compared to when you were a high school student? Perception v. reality? Were there any surprises about college that you did not account for? What have been your biggest challenges (i.e....
Perception v.s. Reality on Attending College
Before I even got to college, I felt so limited in my options for higher education. As a DACA student I do not qualify for Federal student aid, this makes it impossible for me to afford attending any university. Even though I had strong grades, the only schools I...
The Importance of Being a Mentor
One of the hardest things about being a first generation student is often times feeling alone. Coming from a family that did not have any experience with applying to colleges, I essentially had to figure everything out myself. While I did seek out help from my...
Summers: Then and Now
This past summer, I spent it at PayPal working as a Full Stack Software Engineering Intern. It was a tough learning experience as I was thrown into a new world but I am overall grateful for the experience. This internship was very technical and it allowed me to build...
How Internships Are Classist
There’s a terrible underbelly to the practice of internships that transcends the anxiety of finding an opportunity that leads to a ‘productive’ summer; and it plagues low income students disproportionally. This past spring semester, I felt frantic with worry over how...
New Year, Last Year!
Wow! I woke up this morning with the buzz of senior year in my ears. The last 3 years swished and tumbled by. This past summer, I had time to reflect on a couple nagging worries that snagged my excitement for this year. The first worry was about my schedule after...