UC’s growing resources for first-generation students

Stern is among the nearly one in five UC students who are considered first-generation college students — meaning they and their siblings are the first in their family to attend a four-year institution of higher learning. UC is attracting a growing number of first-gen students; their numbers jumped by 8% this fall on campus.

Currently UC has 9,259 Bearcats who are first-generation college students. They account for 29.7% of first-year students and 18.2% of the total student body.

“I liked everything about UC when I came for a tour and it was the first time I had been in Cincinnati,” says Stern. “I loved the campus and I thought it would be a great place to grow as a person. I want to stay at UC and attend medical school, the oldest in Ohio, which I think is also very cool.”

Several programs and departments at UC are honoring first-gen students the week of Nov. 6-12 as part of activities around a national First-Generation College Celebration Day set officially for Nov. 8. High school students are invited for a campus tour and UC waives its application fee for prospective students who are considered first-generation college students.

For more events celebrating first-gen students this week check out GetInvolvedUC. 

Combs said success coaches have been hired to focus on the needs of first-generation students in multiple areas including students in the College of Arts & Sciences, the College of Allied Health Sciences, Blue Ash College and Pell Grant-eligible students in programs across the university. 

“Our efforts are targeted to a particular vein of first-generation college students,” says Combs. “But it’s really important to know that as this population increases, it’s going to take a heavy lift on the part of the university to meet all of our first-generation students where they are.”

“And they are talented, smart, motivated, but perhaps they also need additional human, cultural and financial resources,” says Combs.

Combs said many of the first-generation students are used to being leaders in their families, schools and communities. But the college experience is something they’ve not had and they find themselves in a new role.

“They’re not used to asking for help for themselves,” says Combs. “In high school, they were busy helping everyone else and that includes academic help. They’ve been the tutor, not the one who needs tutoring.

“They get to college and it’s a whole new world. That can be very isolating, to get here and start to struggle when you have never struggled academically before,” says Combs. “It fosters that ‘imposter syndrome’ of maybe I don’t belong here. And so we have to help them realize this is completely normal, and yes, you do belong.” 

At UC's regional campuses, Blue Ash College and Clermont College, first-gen students have historically been a large and important part of their student populations. Both regional campuses have been valuable entry points for first-gen students at UC.

About a quarter of students at UC Clermont are first-gen while at Blue Ash College the figure hovers near half of all students.

"UC Clermont with its affordable tutition, open-access admission, small campus and many programs and scholarships geared toward making college accessible to all, has long long been a friendly entry point for first-gen students," explains Dawn Hundley, director of student success at UC Clermont.

"Our Student Sucess Office focuses specially on helping each student, particularly students with limited academic resources find their individual path to success," says Hundley.

Students at UC Blue Ash have access to free academic support resources that include a Math Lab, Science Learning Lab and Writing and Study Skills Center. The college also provides a Success Coaching program for most incoming freshman with a focus on first-gen students. Coaches help students with navigating campus resources and financial aid, setting goals, and enhancing their time management skills.

The support a success coach provides goes beyond referring the student to a resource in housing, tutorial services or counseling, and includes making that connection on the student’s behalf and accompanying that student to a meeting to give reassurance and support, explains Cook.

“What this really comes down to is that universities are big bureaucratic systems with a lot of rules and processes and multilayered activities that involve a lot of different offices,” says Cook. “There is a ‘hidden curriculum’ of rules and expectations for how to be successful at a university; we recognize that some students don’t have access to that knowledge when they enter UC.”

“When we are thinking about first-gen students we do see some students determined to figure things out on their own and not wanting to burden people,” says Cook.

But it’s OK to ask questions, seek advice and not know everything about a university right away. “We are going to celebrate you for doing that,” says Cook.

Cook, a UC alum, remembered an English professor who, on the first day, encouraged her to come to her office hours. “If you come you will get a better grade,” Cook recalls. “I thought, ‘It’s that easy? You come and you get a better grade?’” 

“The professor wasn’t just handing out good grades, but what I realized later is that it was all about creating relationships,” says Cook. “It’s about your presence and the effort you put into the college experience that will make you successful. It’s all these little things that as an institution we see as indicative of someone being a good student and being worthy of investment. We want to ensure that every student can be seen that way.”

Last year was the first time that CECH offered activities associated with national First-Gen College Day. There was a reception for first-gen students with a guest speaker and CECH handed out a total of 16 scholarships, valued at $2,000 a piece, to first-gen undergrad and graduate-level students. A similar event with scholarship awards is planned on Thursday, Nov. 9, in Teachers-Dyer Complex.

“It’s our mission to ensure that every CECH student has the tools, resources and supports to reach their full potential," says Carnaghi. “College is a significant investment, and we want all our students to achieve their goals. We will be there with them every step of the way."

Jack Miner, vice provost for enrollment management, says UC’s interest in first-gen students is part of the university’s long-term mission.

“This is one of the key ways that UC is ‘of’ Cincinnati rather than just ‘in’ Cincinnati,” says Miner. “We are here to lift up communities and provide opportunities. Part of that is making sure that the next generation does better, has more opportunities and is stronger. We are able to do that by making a college education a reality.”

“I want a college education to be within reach for everyone in Cincinnati,” says Miner. “We need to ensure that we have a workforce to support the jobs that are here today but also to attract the businesses and industries that will allow Cincinnati to thrive for decades to come.”