Resourceful, persistent and gritty: these are the three qualities that come to mind when Christal Dimas discusses first-generation students at the University of Maryland.

Dimas, a coordinator for retention at the Office of Undergraduate Recruitment and Scholarships, sought to highlight these strengths at the Academic Achievement Program’s #FearlessFirst celebration Friday. Tables set up outside the Adele H. Stamp Student Union offered hot chocolate and #FearlessFirst gear, while surrounding bulletin boards gave first-generation students a chance to post their accomplishments and provide words of encouragement for others. 

“I think sometimes it can feel very lonely when everyone else knows what they’re doing and everyone else has it figured out, and you’re sort of still trying to learn the language of college and what it means to be here,” said Dimas.

That sense of not belonging, experienced by nearly every new college student, sometimes hits harder for first-generation students, who make up only about 14% of the student body, said Dimas. A lack of “social capital,” as Dimas puts it, makes it more difficult for these students to graduate in four years. 

“There were times when I kind of felt like I don’t belong,” said Delina Peter, a sophomore economics and international relations major and the first in her family to attend college. “Sometimes I feel like, ‘Wait, these people are doing all these things, but like, should I even step in here? Is this my space?’” 

Although Peter has carved out her own spot on campus, there were other challenges she faced as a first-generation student — like convincing her parents that she wouldn’t have to give up on her dreams for financial stability. 

“I know sometimes first-gen parents, they want to push you to do stuff like being a doctor, being an engineer, being a lawyer, because that’s what makes you the most money, in their eyes,” said Peters. “It gets a little frustrating, but then you realize where they come from.”

Daniel Lourenco, a sophomore finance major and fellow first-generation student, said he had trouble communicating with his parents about academic issues.

“I would try to tell them it’s very hard, you know, and they say it’s not that hard. I’m like, ‘It’s kind of different than what you guys think it is,’” said Lourenco.

Despite these unique obstacles, being a first-generation student is something to celebrate, said Lourenco. It’s just one of many details about him, like the fact that wants to own a real estate investment company one day, and that he already has a plan in the works.

Peter’s career path is partially inspired by the experiences of her own parents, who were unable to pursue higher education after moving to Europe from Eritrea, a small African country bridled by conflict. She hopes to use her background in international relations to one day find development solutions for similar war-torn countries.

And soon, Dimas and her team would like to document that work by collaborating with the university’s alumni office to identify past and future first-generation graduates and create a resource that shows what those students are up to.

But in the meantime, Academic Achievement Programs will continue hosting events like #FearlessFirst to shed light on the first-generation community at UMD and provide support, said Dimas.

“It’s more of just like an encouragement,” said Dimas, “…and celebrating that the moment they stepped on this campus, that was an accomplishment in itself.”