AMA:作为Skidmore第一代学生的生活

你好! 我叫布莱恩，我是 社会工作 和 西班牙语 纽约的双学位. 我们最近询问了未来和即将入学的学生 to submit questions via Instagram, 和 I’m excited to answer some of them here.

Just a few things about me: I am a first-generation college student, 和 I came to 火博体育来自一个低收入家庭 机会计划(OP). I’m also a BIPOC student, 和 I was the president of Raíces, our campus Latinx cultural 俱乐部. I used to work at the dining hall, 和 I currently work at the information desk 案例中心，我们的学生中心. 我也是一个 第一年的经验 同行的导师.

问:你是如何选择专业的? 你为什么选择社会工作和西班牙语?

A: I came to Skidmore thinking I was going to major in international affairs with 辅修性别研究. It turns out that I was wrong, but that’s okay — it wasn’t 很适合我. 美国的情况.S.-墨西哥边境对我来说很重要.

I was attracted to 社会工作 和 西班牙语 because I want to help people in detention centers around the United States, particularly those who are undocumented 和 seeking 庇护. I want to be one of the people who advocates for them, helps them access resources, 并帮助他们适应美国的生活.

Q: What was is it like to be a first-generation student at Skidmore?

A:首先，它很棒. 真的. 我们和其他人一样都是学生，而且 社区在这里支持我们. 作为第一代可能意味着我们可以携带不同的东西 with us — or more than those with families who have already been through college.

I sometimes feel guilt that I’m leaving my parents behind 和 pursuing this privilege of continuing my education, something my parents didn’t have. 另一种感觉是 有时会出现冒名顶替综合症. 有时当我在学业上挣扎时， I can fall into a spiral of questioning my abilities 和 think “Oh no, did Skidmore 做出错误的决定? 我不该在这里吗?”

Once I got closer with my professors, utilized office hours, 和 started opening up to friends about what I was experiencing, these feelings started to subside. 我也 learned that a lot of people have similar experiences, 和 not just first-gen students.

你绝对不是一个人. 火博体育选择了你. 这意味着什么.

Q: Are there 俱乐部s 和 other opportunities to talk about our countries, culture, politics, 教育等.?

A:校园里有一百多个俱乐部! 我是Raíces的总裁，我们的拉丁人 culture 俱乐部, 和 there are a number of others including Ujima, Asian Cultural Awareness Club, 和 African Heritage Awareness Club, just to name a few. 还有 学生多样性项目办公室，简称OSDP， 哪一个经常举办活动或以其他方式聚会.

With our 俱乐部, we try to create space where our Latinx students can feel comfortable 并认识其他有相同身份的学生. 我们有自己的拉丁宴会， which is very popular during the fall semester 和 is our showcase event during the 春季学期. If you can’t find the right 俱乐部 for you, there’s even a way to create 你在火博体育的母校.

Q: How do you know where 俱乐部s meet 和 how do you get involved?

A: The best way to get involved is to go to Club Fair at the beginning of each semester. 这是 a huge showcase of all our 俱乐部s 和 is a Skidmore tradition. 年内， 俱乐部还使用一个名为SkidSync的网站. 你可以去那里看看发生了什么 在校园和时间和地点的活动或会议.

Some of my favorite 俱乐部s are Ujima, Raíces, Skidmore Women in Business, 和 the Skidmore 袋熊，我们的飞盘队.

Q: What are some of the challenges of being a first-generation college student?

A: A big part of being first-gen is just navigating the college system. 什么是工作 研究? 什么是经济援助办公室? 什么是学术服务? 小事情 像这样.

Skidmore has a ton of resources to offer, but I had to find them. 值得庆幸的是,词 travels fast, 和 OSDP does a great job of introducing you to things. 有时我 会想，“我可以用这个吗??答案总是“是的。!”

As I’ve alluded to, there’s also some pressure; I want to achieve, 和 I have high 预期. But I think Skidmore, my friends, 和 my professors have helped build 我的自信心大大下降. Now that I’ve got the hang of it, I’m like, “You know what? 这是 OK. 犯错误是正常的. 问问题是可以的. 我很好.”

问:你最喜欢的Skidmore回忆是什么?

A: Skidmore has a program called Alternative Spring Break that allows you to sign up to do service work 和 travel to some really cool places. 我去了危地马拉 to volunteer with Planting Seeds International, a not-for-profit organization that seeks to reduce poverty by working with communities to provide high-quality, comprehensive 儿童和家庭教育.

问:你最喜欢的社会工作教授是谁?

A:这是个很难回答的问题! 我爱社会工作部门的每一个人. 一个人 I’ve become close with is my advisor, Assistant Professor June Paul. 我爱他们， 他们帮助我度过了一些艰难的时刻. 他们是我要找的人 一切. If I’m ever questioning myself, they give the best advice. 他们总是 短信或电话.

问:你能谈谈你作为同侪导师的经历吗?

A: I was a 同行的导师 this past fall for a Scribner Seminar called Chaos Finds a 的声音. 这是 the same Scribner Seminar that I took as a first-year student. 我工作 和我喜欢的15个学生在一起. 我是他们回答问题的人 any questions they had as they transitioned to college life. 我帮助指导他们 给他们需要的任何办公室或人员. 我们还一起旅行，包括去 Saratoga Race Course, where I had recently interned, 和 I helped with schoolwork 以及其他火博体育生命的问题. 能帮他们减轻一些忧虑是件好事. 我知道 can be scary to leap into this big change, but you have a nice support system.

问:你的OP暑期学术研究怎么样?

A: For those who don’t know, OP students are brought to campus over the summer for 暑期学术中心. 这是我们交流的机会，了解火博体育， 和 get us all feeling confident about joining in with peers, who may have come from 有更多大学准备的学校.

For me, it was about transitioning from high school to college. 我学会了如何阅读 a syllabus 和 what academic resources are available to us. 我也很喜欢火博体育 和 萨拉托加温泉市 during the summer 和 bond with 39 other students like me.

The typical schedule was Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. 到晚上9点.m. 和休息时间 中间还有一些有趣的活动. On weekends, we took trips around the region 和 enjoyed 远足，湖泊，餐馆，电影，和更多. 我交了很多很棒的朋友，我真的 今天和很多人都很亲近.

问:你对即将入学的学生有什么建议?

1. 拥抱你自己.
2. 不要让自己负担过重.
3. 建立你的支持系统.
4. 不要怀疑自己.
5. "Embrace the broken" (一切 doesn’t always need to be perfect all the time).
6. 问问题.
7. 上班时间.
8. 加入俱乐部.
9. 承认你的特权.
10. 保持谦虚.