While there has certainly been progress made for each first-generation college student who dons a cap and gown, this population of students still faces difficulty entering the workforce. For example, first-gen college students are more likely to work during college to support themselves than participate in extracurricular activities on campus, which can harm them when it comes time to demonstrate their leadership skills and school involvement on their resumes.
At the same time, first-gen college students are making up more of the workforce. Looking at the class of 2015, first-gen college students represented approximately one-third of all graduating students, and 56% of undergraduate college students in 2015 hailed from families in which neither parent received a higher education.
To shed light on how to support first-gen college students and help them as interns and entry-level employees, we invited three first-gen college students turned TA leaders to talk about this growing population of students — Ed Veloz of TD Bank, Lauren Cardenas of Grant Thornton, and Chloe Fisher of Qualtrics — and the value they can add to your organization. In fact, Lauren told us, “I developed so many skills and talents as a first-gen college student! Attributes that have helped me get to where I am today include resourcefulness, strategic thinking, persistence, and conscientiousness.”
You can watch the panel replay here, and see below for some of the key points of our discussion.
One of ways that you can implement more support for first-gen college students is to go beyond the basics of attending career fairs to meet this pool of talent. These students often require a deeper level of support to connect with hiring companies and have a smooth transition into the workforce.
A key way to offer this support is to integrate mentorship opportunities into your recruitment model. Mentorship for first-gen college students, particularly those at an earlier stage in their education, will lead to a greater understanding of what positions are available, the skills required to land a role, and what it will take to achieve their desired level of success.
Unfortunately, first-gen college students are often at a significant disadvantage when it comes to the interview process. Particularly when entering highly technical fields such as finance, they may only have a few weeks to prepare for an interview. This includes familiarizing themselves with the brand and the responsibilities of the position.
Businesses can take a more active role in the early training of first-gen college students who may be interested in entering their field. This can include providing a slew of helpful resources, such as free courses to gain inside knowledge about the industry and the assessments typically given to interviewees. If taken early in their college career, this training can serve as the foundation first-gen college students will build upon over the next few years to interview for a role successfully.
If a company takes an active role in preparing students for career power moves, an unlikely effect is likely to surface: the development of a community. First-gen college students may feel alone in their pursuit of a higher education and a good job after graduation. Allowing your employees and other first-gen college students to connect in a casual setting can motivate this population of talent to continue on that journey. By surrounding first-gen college students with people who want to see them succeed, you are not only giving them the chance to practice mock interviews, and have partners to study with for skills-based assessments, but you will also provide them with a deeper level of support as they prepare to enter the workforce.
One way to create a stronger sense of community is to host social events. And these gatherings may have little to nothing to do with your company, apart from supporting its primary values. A casual, quarterly social event can provide great fodder for first-gen students on campus to connect with each other, and to form friendships with your employees.
As mentioned earlier, first-gen college students often enter their career searches at a significant disadvantage. They may not know how to interact with employers, or how to answer questions about their strengths and weaknesses. That’s why it would be extremely valuable to offer first-gen students in your pipeline opportunities to practice interviewing, and to workshop their resumes.
Once that sense of community previously mentioned has been created, finding prospective candidates who might need that extra help is simple, because you've already engaged with them. It can also segue into a strong mentoring program that keeps the door open for questions, concerns, and guidance about what a career in a particular industry may look like.
As the academic year is just getting ready to start, this is a prime time for companies to start considering what they need to do to support first-gen college students — from helping them connect with their peers and your team much before they begin their search for employment, to providing resume reviews to prepare them to land a role in your industry. These tweaks to your recruitment strategy can allow you to see more first-gen talent enter your workplace, and succeed in the labor market.