First-Generation Chicana/Latina Experiences in Undergraduate Research Mentorship

• In Event: Mentoring and belonging in student educational journeys

Abstract

Despite increasing college completion rates among Chicanas/Latinas, significant educational disparities persist within white supremacist and settler colonial institutional structures. This Chicana feminist qualitative study examines undergraduate research (UR) mentorship experiences of 14 Chicana/Latina college students, utilizing intersectional frameworks to center their narratives. While UR programs are recognized as high-impact practices that improve retention and outcomes across populations, limited anticolonial or antiracist scholarship exists regarding first-generation Chicana/Latina experiences in these settings. This research investigates: What are the UR mentorship experiences of first-generation Chicana/Latina college students? How do these mentorships disrupt or perpetuate white supremacy and settler colonial logics? The study addresses the need for culturally responsive support programs accounting for complex social locations and historical marginalization of Chicanas/Latinas in higher education.

Author

• Mariana Carrola, UC Davis