My stepdaughter’s parents are not college graduates. I got my GED and then went to a for profit university. (Bad decision- I’m still paying on those student loans.) I started living with her when she was 11 and a half. My home is her primary residence. Does that mean I’m keeping her from being a first generation student?
Different colleges have different definitions.
Some colleges base it on whether any parent has attended college, while others base it on whether any parent has graduated with a bachelor’s degree. There may also be variations based on whether stepparents versus non-custodial biological parents are considered.
The colleges get to decide what qualifies as first gen but usually it is parent is a graduate of a four year college. I can’t tell if you fit that description or not.
Agree, different colleges have different definitions of first generation. Your step-daughter will put the relevant information on her application and each college will make a determination. In any event colleges will see that both of her biological parents did not attend college.
I’m guessing there’s no list out there of which schools ascribe to which definition, right? And schools would be looking for the student to ask them individually that question, and not the stepparent. So that’s that, because I am not going to borrow trouble and bring to her attention that I may have screwed her out of having a hook.
@happy1 Forgive me if this is an ignorant question, but she won’t be putting information about her other biological parent, right? Does the Common App ask about parents outside the applicant’s household?
To answer your question, I have never seen a list of what different schools consider to be first generation.
But please relax. Being first generation is not a huge hook for admissions. Yes, some colleges may place a bit of value being first generation that status will absolutely not get her into a school that she isn’t otherwise qualified to attend. And as I said earlier admissions officers WILL see that her biological parents did not attend college.
Judging from your level of concern I imagine that the benefits your step-daughter has had from having you as a co-parent far outweigh any potential loss of first generation status by a couple of schools.
And as a piece of unsolicited advice, this process is difficult enough so try not to stress over things you can’t change.
“EXCEPTION: The FAFSA form asks about your parents’ education level. For these two questions, your parents are considered to be your birth parents or adoptive parents—your stepparent is not your parent in these questions.”
from https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa/filling-out/parent-info "What if I have a stepparent? section