Date of Award

Spring 2026

Language

English

Embargo Period

4-28-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Educational Policy and Leadership

Program

Educational Policy and Leadership

First Advisor

Deborah Schussler

Committee Members

Deborah Schussler, Teniell Trolian, Nick Kocieniewski

Keywords

First-generation college student employment

Subject Categories

Higher Education

Abstract

First-generation college students have been a population of interest in higher education for several decades as they are both a historically underserved group and make up a significant portion of the college-going population (RTI International, 2019a; Schuyler et al., 2021), making them an impactful group of students to research. As a whole, first-generation college students tend to fall behind their non-first-generation college student peers in key areas that are indicators of student success, including engagement, persistence, and degree completion (Goldman et al., 2022; Kezar & Kitchen, 2020; Kuh et al., 2007; McCallen & Johnson, 2020; Means & Pyne, 2017; Pendakur, 2016), demonstrating a need to better understand the needs of this population, as well as how they can be better supported in their pursuit of higher education. The existing literature on first-generation college students notes a connection between first-generation college students and working while enrolled, as a large percentage of first-generation college students engage in some level of employment while in college (Falcon, 2015; Gibbons, 2014; Goldman et al., 2022; Nunez & Sansone, 2016; RTI International, 2019b).

The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences of first-generation college students who work while enrolled, specifically those working as Resident Assistants (RA) in university residence halls. Additionally, this study aims to examine what role employment, specifically the RA job, may play in influencing student success, as existing research demonstrates that there is a need to explore how student success rates can be improved in first-generation college students. The goal is to be able to better comprehend this population of students’ needs, with the hope of being able to provide recommendations for practice and research to increase opportunities for supporting first-generation college students.

To achieve this goal, a qualitative study was developed to collect the narratives of first-generation college students working as RAs at public four-year institutions in the northeast. Data were collected via a questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, and a document analysis of RA documents from the three participating institutions. Student success, first-generation college students, and student employment were the three main topics which framed the development and interpretation of this study. The study looked at the influences of student success including pre-college behaviors, engagement with campus systems, and available identity conscious support strategies, which are resources dedicated to supporting students based on facets of their identity (Pendakur, 2016), employed by the institution. It also examined the influence of the RA job on student success including aspects of employment and job responsibilities, support systems in the RA role, and challenges presented by the RA job. Finally, student success for this study focused on retention, persistence, and degree completion, academic and social engagement and involvement, sense of belonging, and professional and personal development.

The results of the study provide information relating to pre-college characteristics and experiences and college experiences, which provide insight on readiness for college and the college decision-making process for the participants, and their ability to successfully transition to college. The findings also indicate that there are many ways in which the RA job supported the success of the participants. The RA job offered support for (1) retention, persistence, and degree completion, specifically through supporting goal achievement, (2) academic and social engagement and involvement, (3) sense of belonging, and (4) professional and personal development. The results indicated that the most beneficial forms of support were (1) the financial support offered through the job, (2) support from the supervisor, (3) support from peers, and (4) the skill and competency development they received through formal training opportunities. While there does appear to be a connection between the RA job and supporting student success for this study, there are some challenges that were highlighted in the RA job as well. These include, (1) dealing with residents, (2) balancing expectations and boundaries, (3) handling difficult and sensitive incidents, (4) staff conflicts, (5) the time commitment and workload of the job, (6) the job was at times a hindrance on academic success and social success, and (7) training provided through the job did not always effectively prepare them. These results provide a holistic narrative of the experiences of the participants of the study, suggesting recommendations for research and practice.

License

This work is licensed under the University at Albany Standard Author Agreement.

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