Troubling First-Generation Status: Examining Internship Participation by Levels of Parental Education

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 1:45 pm - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Transforming inclusive enviroments in higher education

Abstract

This study examines how students’ parental education relates to distinct stratification patterns in internship participation among first-generation college students (FGCS), moving beyond monolithic categorization. Using almost 200,000 senior responses to the National Survey of Student Engagement, we analyze how student engagement measures serve as pathways to internship access across varying levels of family educational privilege. The change in odds of internship participation varied significantly by parental educational attainment between high school non-completers to doctoral degree holders, with academic gatekeeping and demographic disparities evident. Student-faculty interaction particularly relates to FGCS in accessing internships, while sense of belonging favors continuous-generation students. These results underscore opportunities for faculty to enhance access to transformative internship experiences for students with the lowest social capital.

Authors

• Hee Song, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• John Zilvinskis, Binghamton University - SUNY

• Kelli K Smith, Binghamton University