Quick question:
As the child of parents who have multiple associates degrees (less than a bachelor’s) or have completed a master’s degree in a foreign country (with the credentials never transferred to the United States), what would my status as an applicant for scholarships or colleges be in terms of being a first-generation student or not?
They usually mean that your parents do not have a post-secondary education. At all from anywhere in the world.
If a kid whose parent went to the Sorbonne, Oxford, Cambridge, IIT, Tokyo U. or any elite college outside the U.S. claimed to be first gen, would you cry foul?
Different entities have different definitions of “first generation”. Some define it as “neither parent has a bachelor’s degree or higher”. Others define it as “neither parent attended college”. You would not qualify under either definition if you have a parent who has completed a master’s degree (anywhere in the world).
^ This