Collecting thoughts on #wpsa18 roundtable on being first generation in political science. One of the key things discussed was the importance (for ourselves, other scholars & students) of speaking about our first gen status. Are you a #firstgenpolisci scholar? What’s your story?
Here’s mine: My father worked in construction, my mother in a call centre. I dropped out of high school, got a community college degree & was actively dissuaded from returning to university. (1/x)
I chose schools based on proximity & didn’t know what grad school was until my final year. I had no knowledge of that world whatsoever. At one point I was juggling 3 part-time jobs to pay for school, and I never had the time or $$& to take internships (2/x)
I didn’t really have time to participate in university activities at all. I naively thought the way to success was to work harder, that “networking” was just a bougie term for socializing - that if I wanted to be successful I just needed to hit the books harder than others (3/x)
I lacked (and still lack) the soft skills that are often taken for granted. I didn’t know how to prep for an interview or what to wear. I was constantly aware of and held back by my class even if on the surface I looked like most academics (read: straight cis white man) (4/x)
Class is rarely discussed in discussions of diversity & inclusion & it is crucial. My experience as someone who was not held back by my gender or race is instructive. It was hard as fuck for me, confusing & alienating, and the rest of the deck *wasn’t* stacked against me (5/x)
So for other #firstgen scholars who are facing multiple points of disadvantage it must be unbelievably difficult. Class is rarely visible so it’s worth our time and effort to make it visible - if just to let first gen students & faculty know they’re not alone in the academy (6/6)
