Quarantine has been in effect for over a month now and as you look forward, you can’t help but also look at your past and question yourself. Don’t worry, you and so many other first generation college students, especially students of color, will probably experience this form of questioning as you navigate unfamiliar situations and environments.

Throughout undergrad, you did everything you could with what you had at the time. As you begin long process of starting applications for future programs and fellowships you’re interested in, remember to breathe. Plus, let’s face it: you did well in undergrad. As a first generation student, and the first in your family on the road to a university degree, you accomplished so much. From Dean’s List, 4.0s (from time to time), a myriad of scholarships, the opportunity to study abroad, endless friends, and so on, you truly DID THAT!

I know this quarantine has been difficult. It would be wild if it wasn’t, right? Celebrate where you are now: in the graduate program you wanted to be in for years at the specific university too!

If you could go back in time and re-do anything, what would you actually do differently? I don’t want to be the one to burst the bubble but I have to: you most likely wouldn’t approach much differently. Ok, sure, you probably would have taken an umbrella with you that one day you didn’t think it was actually going to rain, and then it did; but other than that, throughout undergrad, you did the absolute best with what you had! Don’t forget that and don’t let the intimidation stemming from fellowship questionnaires, current PhD students’ profiles, and scholarship requirements you interested in worry you NOW. They can try to blur your perception, but you will overcome it all and with clarity.

You, Manny, the first in your family to enroll in university, and at a large institution (and your goal school), strived and thrived when you were pressed with setbacks. Not once or twice, but many times!

Shift the narrative and let this quarantine be a time to accept your outcomes, not challenge them.

First generation students will always ask themselves if they’re “enough” or “worthy,” and we (you) need to full heartedly embrace that you are.

^_^,
Manny