Gallegos / Medical Education Online / January 2022
Being a First Generation (First Gen) college graduate is an important intersectionality which impacts the lens through which First Gen students learn to become physicians. In this Perspective, the authors define the First Gen identity and review some of the salient First Gen literature as it applies to the medical school experience. They discuss the conception, design and execution of First Gen initiatives and program development at their medical school as a call to action and model for other institutions to create communities for their First Gen populations, focusing on inclusion and tailored support. The authors describe the framework through which they envisioned their programming for First Gen medical students, trainees, staff, and faculty at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
