Elena Ion / Family Relations / April 2022
The aim of this article is to explore the lived experiences of low-income, first-generation students (FGSs) in career development and the role played by their families in this process. The literature illustrates mixed results of the parental influence on first generation students' career development. Several studies portray low family involvement in students' career plans and outcomes. In contrast, the strengths-based literature presents the family as the main “source” of FGS assets. However, there is a dearth of strengths-based studies regarding FGSs' career development and family role. A phenomenological study was carried out using semistructured interviews with twenty Romanian low-income FGSs. Low-income FGS families rely on an extensive array of assets that help FGSs to navigate the academic system and to develop their careers, suggesting the role of familial capital. Despite this, several challenges jeopardize FGSs' career development. Familial capital is a useful concept for the analysis of career development for low-income FGSs. Still, the extent to which students' strengths and their familial capital are sufficient for a coherent career development process is limited. The strengths-based view can inform research aimed at identifying the assets of vulnerable populations. Within academia, familial capital should be recognized as a mechanism able to reinforce the capabilities and resources of low-income FGSs. In-school vocational and career counseling beginning in early career-life periods can improve career development for those who may be the first in their families to go to university.
