Date of Award

Spring 5-30-2025

Document Type

Thesis (Master's)

Department or Program

Master of Arts in Liberal Studies

First Advisor

Elizabeth Carpenter-Song

Second Advisor

Donald Pease

Third Advisor

Lee Coffin

Abstract

The most promising way for young people to achieve upward mobility, which at the most basic level means making more money than their parents, is to attend the best college possible. From its inception, Dartmouth College has been an institution set up to educate the children of the wealthiest and most powerful families. Over the last few decades, more and more promising students have come from families whose parents and grandparents did not attend college. When First-Generation Low-Income (FGLI) students arrive at Dartmouth, they encounter an institution set up for wealthy students. I aimed to discover how well Dartmouth supports FGLI students to graduation, allows them to thrive, and prepares them for upward mobility after graduation. I interviewed three students and five alums who completed the First Year Summer Enrichment Program (FYSEP) run through the First-Generation Office—and six staff members who work closely with FGLI students. I recorded the interviews using Dartmouth-supported Zoom software and sent them to a company to have them transcribed. I used another Dartmouth-supported coding software to code the interviews using a coding scheme I developed. I coded the data into several categories. As I coded, I added more code categories. Once the data was coded, I analyzed it. I found the three main themes that arose: the adjustment to Dartmouth, challenges that threaten successful graduation in four years, and the alums’ views on upward mobility and building social capital. I found that my interviewees experienced culture shock, feelings of impostor syndrome, and self-doubt. They encountered challenges and hidden barriers. Some FGLI students struggle to build social capital and utilize resources at Dartmouth. Furthermore, alums who did not build a good social capital base found it more challenging to obtain high-paying employment. They all struggled at some level with navigating life, having achieved financial upward mobility.

Download

Share

COinS