Faces of First Gen

I would say being First-Gen at Carleton means that there is a community here that you can connect with and will help you in learning a lot about yourself. Carleton is a great place to learn what that means. Being First-Gen at Carleton means figuring out all of your strengths and figuring out how they work together. And you find your community and you all grow together.

While self-doubt accompanied my first year at Carleton, my pride and confidence have become more pronounced with each obstacle that I’ve overcome. I have realized that being a first-generation student has equipped me with the skillset (i.e., time management skills, flexibility, reaching out for help) to persevere, because I have always had to overcome additional challenges to get ahead.

Being the first in my family to attend college, I am motivated by internal pressures to pave the way for my siblings. At times, the weight of that pressure feels like I cannot afford to slip up because I worry that my siblings would follow in my footsteps. More often than not, however, being the first one in my family to attend college has been personally empowering, because it has revealed that I can achieve the goals that I set out for myself.