first-generation

How This Hen Found Her Home

Posted on March 28, 2022September 21, 2022 by Linda Phan

By Linda Phan ‘24 As a first-generation, low-income student, I didn’t find the college admissions process to be centered around finding the ultimate academic institution that would best fit my needs as a student and individual. Instead, I was focused on getting into any college, regardless of location, size, or campus culture. I applied to a total of 37 colleges, terrified o...

The College Search: Sage(hen) Advice from Hayeon

Posted on May 7, 2021September 21, 2022 by Hayeon Lee

This is the fourth in a six-part series of advice for high-school-aged students about the college search process. Enjoy! By Hayeon Kayla Lee ’23 I came to Pomona as a Jack Kent Cooke College Scholar and ended up double majoring in English and Politics. I am passionate about equity in education, and I hope to attend graduate school after my years at Pomona to bec...

Tackling Imposter Syndrome at Pomona College

Posted on February 25, 2021September 21, 2022 by Hayeon Lee

screenshot of unmute and start video buttons on zoom

By Hayeon Lee ‘23 Have you ever felt like you don’t belong in an environment where everyone else seems more capable? More at home? When you begin to feel the icky feelings of Imposter Syndrome, know that you are not alone. During the summer of 2020, I had the pleasure of interning for the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships as a Communications Int...

My Father’s Dreams

Posted on August 14, 2020September 21, 2022 by Ebenezer Mensah

By Ebenezer Mensah '23 When I read my admission letter to Pomona, the first person I thought of was my father. Born a few years before Ghana gained independence, he grew up in a society where education was seen as a tool for alienating children from their traditional values. His father refused to send him to school, but his mother enrolled him at a local school. His father a...

Coming Back Home

Posted on April 22, 2020September 21, 2022 by Hayeon Lee

A trip to Little Tokyo, Los Angeles with my ID1 Class, Mirroring Japan/ese America

Hayeon Lee '23 I am originally from Los Angeles but attended a boarding high school in Connecticut for four years. Although I enjoyed the four years that I spent on the east coast for high school, I had always known that I wanted to come back to Los Angeles for college and that I felt most at home on the West Coast. However, after college decisions came out in March o...

10 Moments that Highlighted My First Year at Pomona

Posted on April 2, 2020September 21, 2022 by Selena Lopez

By Selena Lopez ‘22 I don’t know about you, but, to me, there has always been something about lists that draws me in. “Top ten places to visit,” “best books to read this break,” “47 things to do while at Pomona”— the list goes on. Do I complete these lists? No … not necessarily. I’m also not good at keeping up with the lists that I make. Daily to-do lists? Can’t follow them....

From Hiding in My Room to Being a Student Leader in the Draper Center

Posted on February 6, 2020September 21, 2022 by Selena Lopez

By Selena Lopez ‘22 Back in the year 2018 (seems far away, doesn’t it?), I came across a Facebook post asking for someone to lead a tour for a group of first-generation, low-income students visiting the Draper Center, the center for community service at Pomona. Being a fellow first-gen, low income student, I thought it would be fun to show them around my school. Did I know ...

Tips About Financial Aid

Posted on March 27, 2019September 21, 2022 by Kensi Martinez

By Kensi Martinez ‘21 Before coming to Pomona, I attended a highly competitive public high school in Los Angeles, where I learned to strive for top grades. Once I started classes at Pomona though, I was surprised to discover that a collaborative learning process—working together on class projects and studying with my classmates—was the norm here. Having gone through the p...

On Being Part of an Underrepresented Group at Pomona

Posted on March 21, 2019September 21, 2022 by Daniel Garcia

FLi at 1vy-G, the inter-Ivy, First-Gen Conference

By Daniel Garcia ’21 On campus, I work for Dean Townes, the Associate Dean for Student Mentoring and Leadership, who oversees all of Pomona’s mentoring programs. We have 10 mentoring programs at Pomona that provide a current student mentor to first-year students from similar backgrounds. While the mentor programs are almost entirely student-run and organized, the team under ...

The Bridge Between College and Home

Posted on June 14, 2018September 21, 2022 by Nick Timms

By Nick Timms '21 My mom told me once (well, more than once) that I had two options: go to college or look for another place to call home. Naturally, I went with the first of the two choices. She knew that, following the clichéd mantra, college was the “key to success.” And I wanted to go myself. No longer having to ask her if I could go out, and being able to figure out all...