Information Services has recently obtained a variety of “First in Family” badges, as part of the University’s First in Family campaign. Staff who were the first in their family to attend University may choose to wear them, to help raise awareness and be a friendly face for our current first-generation students. The badges will be placed at reception in Argyle House for colleagues to take and use if they wish.

What does “First in Family” mean?

The University of Edinburgh has launched a First in Family campaign, to help support students who are the first in their family to attend University. This campaign recognises how daunting the experience can be for students without guidance from family who also attended university. In fact, research from UCL found that first generation students are more likely to drop out of university than those with graduate parents, and less likely to attend a Russell Group University (Sewell, 2020). This highlights the advantage held by students with parents who attended University, and the need to provide first-in-family students with support and a similar knowledge network.

Being a first-generation student also intersects with other characteristics and experiences: students who are first-in-family are much more likely to be from low-income backgrounds and are also more likely to be of a minority ethnicity, with white British people attending University at much higher rates (Coombs, 2021). However, first-generation students are not the minority: approximately two-thirds of students across the UK are first-in-family, mostly due to the expansion of higher education and widening participation. Amongst Russell Group Universities, however, the majority of students are still those with parents who also attended University (Coombs, 2021).

Why participate in the First in Family campaign?

The new campaign is designed to support our first-generation students, by highlighting how many staff at the University understand their experience and can provide guidance. Staff who were the first in their family to attend University can participate in the campaign by wearing First in Family badges, to raise awareness and show that they are a friendly face for students in the same position.

Information Services has got a hold of some of these badges and placed them at reception in Argyle House for ISG staff to wear if they choose. However, the badges can be worn for other reasons besides being the first to attend university: colleagues may wish to wear them to represent being the first in family to work in higher education, not to study there. Staff who work at the University, but haven’t been a student, bring a valuable perspective to how we design and deliver our services, increasing the diversity of our thinking and innovation. Colleagues can choose to use the badges to raise awareness for this experience too.

Read more about the First in Family campaign.

Coombs, H. (2021) First-in-Family Students, Higher Education Policy Institute. Available at: https://www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/First-in-Family-Students.pdf (Accessed: 26 April 2024).

Sewell, C. (2020) ‘First in family’ students are more likely to drop out of University, Nuffield Foundation. Available at: https://www.nuffieldfoundation.org/news/first-in-family-university-students-need-more-guidance-navigating-education-system (Accessed: 26 April 2024).