What is considered first generation collge?

[Tommyguns89]

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I assumed that I wasnt until recently because while my parents dont have degrees, they did earn a few credits from community college and a technical school. My friend told me I should check the box because they dont have bachelor's degrees. Is that true, or was I correct in my initial assumption?

 

[askamsky51]

They're right. First generation college refers to Bachelor degrees.

 

[genericpremedstudent]

it means neither of your parents graduated from a 4 year college.

 

[Tommyguns89]

They're right. First generation college refers to Bachelor degrees.

Thank You. That is interesting. Does it mean much for admissions purposes? I dont plan on applying as disadvantaged.

 

[Holmwood]

Thank You. That is interesting. Does it mean much for admissions purposes? I dont plan on applying as disadvantaged.

Well for AMCAS, I think it's more about finances or URM status.

You'll have room to talk about being a first generation college student in the personal statement or your other essay. I know some secondaries ask about it as well.

 

[LizzyM]

The AMCAS application asks for your parents' names, occupations and highest level of education completed. That will be a clue that you are first generation college student.

 

[blackgirlmd]

Whatvabout if one of your parents didnt go to college until you were in college? My mom got her bachelors recently

 

[LizzyM]

Whatvabout if one of your parents didnt go to college until you were in college? My mom got her bachelors recently

AMCAS doesn't really account for that. if you thought that you were disadvantaged going into college because your parent(s) were not college graduates, you could self identify as disadvantaged and explain the situation.

 

[ridethecliche]

To throw some info on why this is the way this is and why LizzyM answered the way she did above is as follows:

Your parent(s) going to college after you graduated doesn't help them in advising you and being a resource during your undergrad 'career'. While you're not disadvantaged due to this, so to speak (though the argument could be made that one is), it certainly affects things.

 

[Doug Underhill]

The AAMC website has this to offer:

The SES Disadvantaged Indicator is one tool that medical schools can use to identify applicants who may come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds and is intended to assist them in putting your application information in context as part of a holistic review process

This indicator is derived from information you provide about your parents’ and guardians’ occupation and education levels using the schema developed by the AAMC.

https://www.aamc.org/students/services/332852/aftersubshared3.8.html

https://www.aamc.org/download/351766/data/amcassesdisadvantagedindicator.pdf

A plain reading of the matrix and the blurb on the page before it seems to indicate that your parents' education level is very closely tied to the SES Disadvantaged Indicator for AMCAS.

 

[LizzyM]

The AAMC website has this to offer:

The SES Disadvantaged Indicator is one tool that medical schools can use to identify applicants who may come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds and is intended to assist them in putting your application information in context as part of a holistic review process

This indicator is derived from information you provide about your parents’ and guardians’ occupation and education levels using the schema developed by the AAMC.

https://www.aamc.org/students/services/332852/aftersubshared3.8.html

https://www.aamc.org/download/351766/data/amcassesdisadvantagedindicator.pdf

A plain reading of the matrix and the blurb on the page before it seems to indicate that your parents' education level is very closely tied to the SES Disadvantaged Indicator for AMCAS.

True... but, the indicator is based on your parents education and occupation at the time you apply, not during your childhood. So if you are applying at age 26 and your mom, a single parent, graduated from college when you were 20 and from law school when you were 24, it looks like you are the highest SES according to AMCAS when, in fact, your mom was working with a HS diploma when you were a kid and only started community college after you started HS. Granted, that is a rare situation that is not accounted for in the data classification scheme AMCAS uses which is why, in my opinion, adcoms don't use those classifications for individual holistic assessments but to consdier data analysis that uses them on population-wide research studies of outcomes for various groups of medical students.

 

[Syns]

@LizzyM

My situation is one of those rare cases you are talking about. Raised by a single father in poverty. My siblings and I were placed in state custody when I was sixteen. When I was attending college and subsequently working afterwards, my father was busy getting himself an education. He has an B.A. and MBA now but is unemployed. Neither side of my family has attended college. Both sets of grandparents are uneducated. None graduated from high school or equivalent.

I do not want to mark my application as disadvantaged but should I address this in another capacity? (None of this is mentioned on my Primary.)

 

[LizzyM]

@LizzyM

My situation is one of those rare cases you are talking about. Raised by a single father in poverty. My siblings and I were placed in state custody when I was sixteen. When I was attending college and subsequently working afterwards, my father was busy getting himself an education. He has an B.A. and MBA now but is unemployed. Neither side of my family has attended college. Both sets of grandparents are uneducated. None graduated from high school or equivalent.

I do not want to mark my application as disadvantaged but should I address this in another capacity? (None of this is mentioned on my Primary.)

If you were a ward of the state at 16 and choose not to self-identify as disadvantaged or otherwise address it in your AMCAS application, I really don't know what to tell you.

 

[Syns]

So, I should not address it in my secondaries or interviews?

 

[LizzyM]

So, I should not address it in my secondaries or interviews?

If there is a prompt or an interview question in which it is relevant, then answer providing backgroun similar to what you've provided here.

 

[Syns]

Thank you.