Abstract
In this Career Development commentary, the author highlights the value of tailored mentoring and experiential learning from the perspective of a first-generation college student. University faculty and practitioners in diverse settings have the opportunity to mentor emerging public health professionals but may not have experience mentoring first-generation college students. We hope that this commentary encourages our readers to reflect on mentoring strategies, opportunities, and benefits for first-generation college students.
Keywords
This article builds on previous work that provided perspectives from students underrepresented in the public health profession on how their mentored experiences contributed to their professional and career development (Hernandez, Bejarano, Reyes, Chavez, & Mata, 2014). The intent of this article is to examine a first-generation college student’s experience and the role of mentoring through experiential learning. The term first-generation college student is used within this commentary to define a student whose parents did not complete a 2 or 4-year college degree (Brown University, 2018; University of Wisconsin Platteville, n.d.).
Being a first-generation college student is and was common at my local university in the United States–Mexico border region. As a high school senior, I experienced some serious “sticker-shock” when I researched the cost of attending college far from home. With a small scholarship in my pocket of $1,000 dollars to our local university, I had my mind made up that this was where I was going to go, and I was confident that my small scholarship would go far. Nine years and two degrees later, as I reflect on my experiences as a first-generation college student, I realize that these experiences have not only shaped my own career path but have also instilled in me a deep commitment to being a mentor and role model to our next generation of public health professionals.
Many of the students from the local university looked like me and had similar backgrounds, so I thought mine was a typical college environment. However, as I progressed in my health promotion degree, I became aware that I was part of a group that has low rates of graduation, does not perform as well academically, and is more likely to have lower educational aspirations when compared to their peers who have family going to college (Tate et al., 2015; University of Wisconsin Platteville, n.d.). This did not match my own perceptions of my peers and community, since my goal was to graduate in 4 years even if I did not have a clear plan to do so.
Mentee Experience
In 2008, I met my mentor while pursuing my undergraduate coursework in health promotion with a minor in community health at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). When I started at UTEP, I knew that I wanted to do something in the realm of health professions but had not narrowed my direction yet. During a foundation class for health promotion, a doctoral student spoke to us about health disparities and research she did in the community. Prior to the guest lecture, our class read one of her articles on Hispanic health disparities, and our professor had advised us it would be a good idea to be prepared to ask questions. I took that advice to heart, read the paper, and was prepared to ask questions—little did I know it was a connection that would lead to many others, including to my first internship experience!
Most of what I learned in the classroom made more sense when I was out in the community applying those skills. Luckily, I never fell short of volunteer opportunities that were presented during my health promotion classes. Whenever there was an opportunity, I went for it! My first volunteer opportunity was being part of a research team that collected data on nutrition and physical activity among youth. During this time in my life I did not have a car, which is a common challenge for first-generation college students. Fortunately, I was able to meet at a convenient location to carpool with others to the variety of schools around El Paso where we conducted our research. This experience provided me with a better understanding of health promotion and community health, and my potential role as community health educator. On a personal level, this first experience helped me gain confidence and be creative when needing to troubleshoot challenges I had as a college student in general, and as a research team member in particular.
Staying connected with my mentor throughout my collective real-world experiences during my undergraduate degree was a great way to reflect on challenges and opportunities I encountered as I gained experience in community health. We made it a priority to meet regularly, and during one of our discussions she encouraged me to attend my first Society of Public Health Education (SOPHE) conference. In addition to encouraging me to attend, she suggested that I apply for a SOPHE 21st Century travel scholarship. In my life to that point I had never really had this type of motivation or support to help direct me professionally or to help me maximize my time as a university student. I also never had the confidence to apply to these types of opportunities, having heard that they are very competitive. But I applied, and I received the travel scholarship! Attending a professional conference is a career development step that I highly recommend because it comes with many benefits including but not limited to networking with others in your field of interest (Mata, Latham, & Ransome, 2010). I still remember how powerful just a simple “you can do this—why don’t you apply?” can be, and as I have mentored other students and colleagues over the years, I have encouraged them to join professional organizations like SOPHE and take advantage of opportunities offered to students.
As an undergraduate student, I joined a weekly research group hosted by my future graduate advisor, completed an internship with the Hispanic Health Disparities Research Center, and participated in a Minority Health International Research Training Program in Chile. Through an informal mentoring relationship and peer support with the doctoral student who presented to my health promotion class, I learned how to build my network and apply skills learned in the classroom to real-world community health settings. I also gained the confidence to pursue a career path I would not have known existed, had it not been for this and other mentoring relationships.
Evolving Mentor and Peer Experience
I was nearing the end of my undergraduate degree when I received the daunting, “So Kristen, what are your plans after graduation?” This was then followed by, “Have you ever thought about going to grad school?” Like many first-generation college students, I never really thought about getting an advanced degree or continuing my education. My thinking at the time was that continuing my education would delay me getting a job and helping my family, and I remember this being a common perception among my peers. I remember my mentor saying, “There’s no harm in applying” and “You don’t have to decide now, but if you don’t apply, you won’t even have a decision to make”. She was right—I thought. All her guidance up to this point had helped me better my chances in making myself as competitive as I can be for the end goal of a career in my field of study. I applied and was accepted to continue my education in public health at UTEP.
Through being mentored, I discovered that I had much to share with my own mentors, as well as with student colleagues. Moving on to pursue a graduate degree I had surrounded myself with others who shared a passion for the role of health education in public health. In our group we saw the benefits of reciprocal mentoring (Mata et al., 2010) as it provided many opportunities for our own growth and for us to help others grow and learn. I came from the border community and understood the community context, possibilities, and challenges. When planning for health promotion and education community projects, my perspective and experience complemented the expertise of other team members. We all filled the knowledge gaps together which then also enhanced how we approached our collaborative work with community practitioners, making sure we valued their lens and expertise. Having the ability to be involved in projects collaboratively with my mentor enabled me to understand the dynamic of community outreach and translating research to practice.
First Generation and Career Development
Having a mentor and peer support supplemented my student experience and gave me the motivation and confidence to set higher personal goals for myself. Applying to open opportunities as a student furthered my professional development. I quickly learned and appreciated the benefits of being continuously active within student organizations, regional and national professional organizations, and research projects under university faculty/staff. Real-world experiences in the community help students build a professional network, submit work for publication and presentations at conferences, and work collaboratively with peers and community partners in the field. More important, these experiences enable students to contribute to evidence-based policy improvements that create healthier environments (Garcia, Hernandez, & Mata, 2015; Marquez et al., 2017).
University life also felt easier to navigate as a member of a research group made up of undergraduate and graduate students. The longer you are a student, the more you learn how to navigate the system. The research group served as an incubator of knowledge and practice with each of us connected to different research and projects. In addition, being exposed to graduate students as an undergraduate in turn helped expand my “world view”—I always left our weekly group meetings thinking “if they can do it so can I.”
Supporting first-generation college students along with other students from various backgrounds at the same time can seem like a tall order. Five strategies to help build your tool box include (California State University Fullerton, 2013):
Provide encouragement for students to engage with others outside class through participation in student and professional organizations.
Motivate students to apply for internships and participate in service learning to help connect what is being taught in the classroom to their lives.
Build formal or informal networks and opportunities for students to engage with others.
Whether mentoring relationships are formal or informal, validate mentees’ strengths and the unique lens they bring to the public health research and practice workforce
Stay open-minded to the challenges they face and help build self-confidence to combat those struggles (e.g., feeling disconnected from home, feeling different, having to work harder than other students)
In talking with colleagues and current first-generation students while writing this commentary, what emerged as a common theme in our conversations was the value of these mentoring relationships to ourselves, our profession, and our communities. I hope that this commentary encourages our readers to reflect on how they can develop and sustain strong mentoring relationships and programs for first-generation college students!