Katie Beth Nichols
First-Generation Financial Burdens
Sources:
Miguel Arguigo – first generation student
479-387-1724
mearguji@uark.edu
Alexus Bailey – First Generation Student
479-283-0774
ab050@uark.edu
Jana Rucker
jlrucker@harding.edu
501-279-4316
First-generation college students attending Arkansas schools accumulate almost one thousand dollars more in student loan debt than non-first-generation students, according to data from the Department of Education.
Specifically, first generation students pay more at public and private, nonprofit institutions. At public universities, first generation students pay a median amount of $6,969. This contrasts with the public non first generation students that pay $6,022. The same relationship goes for private nonprofit students: first generation students pay $12,188 and non first generation students pay $10,543. Students attending private, for-profit universities have a different relationship. Non-first-generation students pay slightly more, $8,736, and first generation students pay $8,531.
UA junior Alexus Bailey has experienced the financial gap firsthand. As a first-generation college student, she felt like she was left in the dark about scholarship opportunities.
“I felt like I had to work twice has hard to get anything academically,” Bailey said. “People always tell me to just get scholarships for school, but it’s not as simple as people make it seem.”
Bailey also said that she “broke the chain” of not attending college in her family, but that she feels a lot of pressure for her to succeed, and finances can get in the way of that success.
“I had to take out student loans in order for me to come here,” Bailey said. “I just feel like they don’t offer scholarships for people who are the first ones in their family to go to college.”
UA student Miguel Arguijo is also a first-generation college student. He has scholarship money to completely cover his tuition from the U of A.
“The way I got my scholarship they just found me, I guess,” Arguijo said. It was kind of weird because the College of Engineering just sent me a letter asking if I wanted an interview for the program. I got through the interview and that’s how I got a first-generation scholarship.”
“I’ve been very lucky,” Arguijo said.
“Jumping into the university, I didn’t know what was going on didn’t have anybody to rely on. It was like going in blind.” Arguijo said.
To combat the financial and social burdens that first-generation students face, the University of Arkansas has started a first-generation mentoring program. Both Bailey and Arguijo are involved with the program.
“Having a mentor has given me someone I can talk to,” Bailey said. “I feel alone sometimes because I can’t just go talk to my mom and dad about what’s going on. They just don’t fully understand what I’m going through.”
These same social and financial burdens are true at private, non-profit institutions such as Harding University. Jana Rucker, Vice President of communications at Harding University, was also a first-generation college student. Rucker said that Harding recently launched a program for first-generation students as well. According to a study done by Youth.gov, having a mentor can greatly impact the mentor and the mentee in a positive way.
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