First Generation at Mizzou

We Are First Gen

Office Mission:

The mission of The Office of First-Generation Initiatives is to provide a supportive and welcoming community for all first-generation students and their families by building a campus culture that celebrates and honors the first-generation identity. We connect first-generation students to faculty/staff, resources, and information to help promote academic excellence and sense of belonging from enrollment to graduation.

Definition:

The University of Missouri defines a first-generation college student as one whose parents do not have a bachelor’s degree from a college or university. This also includes students (before age 18) who have not lived with or received support from a parent who has received a bachelor’s degree.

33%

of students nationally

20%

of new Mizzou students (first-time college and transfer)

MU Engage Page

A Family’s Sacrifice for Success

First-gen college student from Venezuela follows his dreams to Mizzou

Lifesavers

MU Student Affairs Care Team helps first-generation college student settle in at Mizzou

When work meets luck

Published on Mizzou Show Me News August 19, 2021 Jesus Oropeza says he just got lucky, but hard work has a lot to do with it. Growing up in Brookfield, Missouri, Oropeza’s childhood wasn’t always a happy one. He was bullied, sometimes violently. His mom worked hard at a factory and still struggled to make…

Intergenerational dreams

First-generation college student Débora Paez Perez found the right major later in her college career. See how her calling is also fulfilling a lifelong dream of her immigrant mother.

University of Missouri

We Are First Gen