To not understand people who talk about being the first in their family to go to uni like it’s a badge of honour?

[Kyrgyzstan]

Sorry if this sounds dismissive of their achievements but isn’t it less of a rags to riches tale of personal achievement and more of a generational difference? I mean barely any of our parents generation went to university and now it’s pretty much expected if you want a half way decent job.

Obviously if you were raised by heroin addicts and managed to still get good grades and go off to uni that’s different but the children of ordinary parents who just didn’t go to university talking about it like a huge achievement sounds a little strange to me?

Not everyone has an equal chance and can just go to uni. It is a big deal for a lot of people. Surprise, surprise it’s not easy for everyone for a myriad of reasons. It doesn’t always mean their parents were heroin addicts either.

I agree. I've been to uni three times undergrad and post grad, so hardly new to us as a family. But I'd still be immensely proud of dc's if they go to uni ( or a degree apprenticeship etc) and would probably tell anyone who would listen 😂.

Became a mum at 16 I’ll go to uni when my kids are a little older, sorry to take the wind out of anyone’s sails but it’s a bit like someone in the year 1920 bragging about being the first in their family to own a car

Tbf everyone and their cat goes to Uni these days. For a lot of young people it’s a rite of passage akin to their first 18-30 holiday.

“Sorry to take the wind out of your sails” but perhaps you shouldn’t have had a baby at 16 and then you could be just as accomplished as these people you’re sneering at?

Both of my parents went to uni. DH's parents didn't. I would say that it gave me significant advantages that he didn't have. And now that a much higher proportion of parents will have been to uni than in my day, the disadvantage for those kids who are the first in their families to go is all the greater.

You can see the difference in some of the education threads. The kids who have clued up parents who understand the system inevitably have an easier journey. We need to do more to level the playing field.

😭😭😭 'unless you were raised by heroin addicts' omgg

Its a huge deal, typically people that are the first to go to uni are from working class families

Surely either her uncle or her grandma was the first to go to uni, depending on which side of your family your niece is from?

You're mid twenties, how old are your parents, what was this era where there weren't opportunities to go to uni?

The first in a family has done it without an example, role model or precedent being set. They haven’t got a parent who understands any of the things which inform decision making. No parent who has a Uni level academia (however clever, skilled or intelligent they may be) .

They haven’t grown up hearing about bring a student as part of a choice to be made.

The wheels are not as well oiled for first generation applicants.

Same for applying to Oxford and Cambridge -parents who went can offer more support, and just give a context of it being something people can do.

I was the first in my family to go to university. Not many of my school friends went either. I don't think I've really mentioned it to anyone, but yes, I'm proud of it. My parents weren't alcoholics or heroin addicts, just normal working class people. They didn't encourage me to apply or give me any help because they had never considered it as an option/didn't think it was necessary. They had made a good life for themselves without a university education. I think your post is mean spirited.

My mum was the first in her family to go to university in the 1960s. Is that enough of an achievement for you?
Given the advantages that having university educated parents give you I think it is an achievement to be the first in your family to go to university.
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2010/apr/26/university-school-grades-child-background
https://www.bps.org.uk/research-digest/better-educated-parents-have-children-who-are-more-relaxed-outgoing-and-explorative
https://www.york.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/2019/research/genesandfamilyarebiggestpredictorofacademicsuccessstudysuggests/
And many more

DH was the first in his huge family. In fact he was the first to stay in school post 16 and got a PhD.
None of them thought it was impressive, they thought it was a waste of time. So the fact he managed it with zero support is impressive I think.
There was a big fuss when one of his younger cousins went though so there was a shift in thinking.

Really? I'm in my 50's and my parents both went to university, although their parents didn't. I know very few people my age who didn't go to university. (I assume I'm a similar age to your parents.)

But I do believe that first generation students should be celebrated. As the child of university graduates there was an expectation that that's probably what I would do. If my parents didn't know anything about that world I do think it would have been more difficult for me.

Quite agree. And for children with less than supportive families the prospect of running up a huge student loan debt, and of finding the money to cover accommodation deposits, and travel expenses for interviews makes applications even more daunting.

There are also many bright students for whom University education is a non starter when faced with expectations about being available to support parents or siblings with caring responsibilities, or with finance in a family where the loss of
benefits when the child leaves school makes a hole in the family budget.

It’s very hard to go to uni if your parents are not supportive and actively try to stop you

Definitely a big deal. Those who go to uni normalise it to their kids, who are then more likely to go.

My grandad missed out of many, many promotions after performing above his grade for decades due to not having a degree. His employer would have sponsored him, but he had no confidence in his academic abilities due to upbringing. None of his 3 children went to Uni despite being bright. One now and engineer - on the job apprenticeship, one passed the at home screening for MENSA. I achieved well at school yet went into an entry level job due to believing we couldn't afford to go to uni.

Looking around me most of my peers who had parents with good jobs and uni backgrounds payed it forwards and continue to do so. Those without, less so.

It’s an enormous achievement, and we should definitely recognise that.

(No axe to grind - I wasn’t the first in my family, although my Dad was. It was a huge achievement for him.)

She presumably had older parents.

My Dad was the first in his family to go to university. His family were miners and out of six children only my dad went to university (1970) so for him, it was a badge of honour. Dad went to Grammar School, Sixth Form and University and didn't go into mining - that in itself was a tough choice...lots of "ideas above his station" "who does he think he is" etc etc.

I suppose in every family someone has to be the first, and getting into university is an achievement whether your the first or latest in a long line of graduates.

Interestingly, both my sister and I have degrees, and out of 8 cousins, only one other has a degree.

It used to be a massive achievement to get into university until the old polytechnics became 'universities' and literally anyone who could walk and chew gum at the same time could get in. And yes, I was the first and I'm justifiably proud because it was through my own efforts entirely with not a private school or tutor in sight.

I mean, not really.

Do you have any A levels to access uni?

It is a big deal when you’ve grown up amongst family who haven’t been to university

This post has got me thinking. I was the first in my family to go to university, in 1979, but I've never thought of it that way. I went because school supported those of us thought to have the ability to go and I was bookish (so I read English), and I was desperate to leave home. Now, I can see that luck played a part too - very good state schools, living in a leafy suburb, no money difficulties, relations who were interested in what I was doing, full grants.

First generation students find it tough. They might not even realize how tough because they can't directly compare their experience. But first gen students are on the back foot. Everything is new and their parents have been unable to fully prepare them. They often miss out on knowledge that uni-goers think is normal (what's Russell group, which rankings to use when choosing a uni, what internships to look for, how to reference properly, what a tutor is for, the difference between module leads and programme support staff, what companies might be good employers, when to look for second year accommodation, what the student union is and does, how to manage a student loan etc. etc.)