To: Rebecca Agosta From: Nina Lam Date: February 12, 2014 Subject of Inquiry: What does it mean

to be a first generation student? Initial Inquiry Subject: I plan on exploring what makes first generation student different from students whose parents grew up here as well. I want to know what it is like to come from a different culture and what is it like to collide their original culture with the American culture. I know that incorporating the two different cultures is difficult because of the different history behind the cultures. Also, I know what it is like to have to switch between the languages and jumping from one identity to another identity. Knowing this information will guide me to prove that I am not the only one that is thinking like that. I can easily make connections with people I may interview or facts that I find online. I am interested in this topic because it relates a lot to myself and I can easily come up with examples of people who may have been in my situation. I am an active participant in this figured world because this is how I grew up and where I am from. Methods: I will start by interviewing people and understanding what it is like to be a first generation student to them. Then I will go online and try to look up statistics on how closely these answers that I have gotten are related to the statistics. I will be using survey, examples of celebrities, and online research to look up information. I can go to the Asian Student Association to interview people and observe what they do. From there, I can obtain information such as how they act and behave, especially those who are first generation students. I will need access to students who are first generation students in order to start this research. Questions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. How does it feel being a first generation student? Does being a first generation student give them more pride and honor or stress? What challenges might an individual run into throughout their educational career? Did your parents help or support them? Does being a first generation student make it difficult communicating with others? Would they consider this a part of their identity? Why or why not? Who have they relied on when they run into trouble during their educational career? What differences do they see between them and students that are not a first generation student? 9. Are first generation students whose parents are from another country different than first generation students whose parents were also born in the US? 10. How and when do first generation students come together?

11. When do students share that they are first generation 12. Is someone a first generation student if their parent attained a degree in a different country/culture?