First Generation & EOP students
First Generation and EOP Students
Being the first in your family to go to college comes with many exciting opportunities. Taking advantage of Global Education programs on campus is one of them. However, if navigating the steps toward a global education experience seems daunting, there are resources to support you.
First generation and EOP students have diverse experiences abroad depending on their intersecting identities, home and host country, level of comfort traveling, and other factors. However, there are experiences that many first generation students share when planning and going on an experience abroad.
These include:
- Convincing your family/support system of the benefits of going abroad
- Navigating the planning process
- Knowing who to reach out to for assistance
- Knowing what to expect while abroad
- Feeling mixed emotions about being abroad if your family/friends don’t have the same experiences/opportunities
- Financing opportunities abroad
- There are many people and resources to support you if you find yourself navigating any of these situations.
Your SDSU network includes:
- Global Education Advisor
- Academic Advisor/Department
- EOP
- Financial Aid
- Program Staff
- Peers
You can also consult our Be International blog site to find stories from first-generation students like yourself.
Navigating life abroad isn’t unlike your experience navigating campus for the first time. As a first generation student, you have skills navigating ambiguous situations that will help you abroad!
Tips for first generation students abroad:
- Take time to celebrate everything you’ve done to get abroad!
- Leverage the skills you’ve developed navigating college as a first generation student and apply them to your experience living in a new place
- Don’t forget to take time for self-care and enjoy your new home
- Reflect on your experience and what it means to you
- Think about how you can talk about your life abroad to others once you return