November 28, 2019

Program links first in family students with mentors

UOW research inspires First Gen initiative

More than 50 per cent of students studying at UOW are the first in their family to attend higher education. This is a great achievement, however, research shows that First Gen students often encounter hidden obstacles which affect their participation and completion of their studies.

On Thursday 28 November, UOW will launch its First Gen Champions initiative. This initiative recognises and celebrates the achievements of UOW academic and professional staff who were the first in their family to attend higher education.

UOW law academic Trish Mundy, the first in her family to go to university, experienced a rewarding career of practising law and later completed a PhD.

She negotiated a number of hurdles to achieve her goals.

“I left high school in Year 10, my family had no expectation that I’d go to University, in fact it probably wasn’t encouraged,” Associate Professor Mundy said.

 “As a mature aged student I decided to go to University to study law. The first time I applied for university I didn’t get in. The important thing was, I didn’t give up.”

Tertiary study took its toll financially and psychologically.

“There was that sense that everybody else was smarter and more capable than me,” Professor Mundy said.

Now, as a First Gen Champion, she’s keen to share her story to ensure that other first in family students feel a sense of belonging and know that everyone’s experience in higher education is different.

First Gen students often do not have immediate access to someone who they feel comfortable with and can guide them through the university landscape and provide them with institutional knowledge.

First Gen Champions are encouraged to connect with students and spend time unpacking academic or UOW terminology. They are also there to recognise their previous experiences and education as an asset.

The First Gen program will offer a mentoring program for first in family students, workshops, resources and celebratory events. The UOW First Gen program will also have a presence at O-week, Early Admissions and within schools’ outreach programs for Future First Gen.

First Gen students have diverse backgrounds, diverse interests and diverse aspirations, and they are all trailblazers.

The First Gen Program seeks to demystify concepts of higher education, develop a sense of belonging and build relationships. Developed in collaboration with current First Gen students, the First Gen Program will also provide accessible support, resources and information for family members. The program will have a strong focus on student delivery of information to ensure relevance.

The program was developed as a result of University of Wollongong research.

In 2018, UOW Professor Sarah O’Shea released her Churchill Fellowship Report which centred on the experiences of First in Family students within Higher Education and looked at initiatives and programs available to First in Family students within the United States and the UK.