Nov. 8 marks the 12th annual National First-Generation College Celebration Day. At the University of Washington, first-generation students make up nearly 35% of the undergraduate community.
Kim Nguyen, an undergrad at the Jackson School, counts herself among this community. As a first-generation college student raised in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, she arrived at the UW without relatives who could guide her through the American university system. Her parents emphasized the importance of education, but couldn’t provide specific advice on navigating the process.
“At that moment, I felt like I really needed advice,” Nguyen, who is also a transfer student, said.
For Nguyen, the Jackson School’s supportive environment has made a significant difference. She regularly meets with advisers and professors, finding mentorship that helps her stay on track.
“I feel safe, because now I have more connections that will support me,” Nguyen said. “The Jackson School is a very big house … and it really feels like a house that I enjoyed a lot.”
Nguyen is also part of the Jackson School’s honors program, where her research examines how cultural productions — songs, photographs, videos, films — shape war memory among Vietnam’s current youth generation.
“I realized that my generation was the first one growing up without any direct memory about the war,” Nguyen said. “We often hear stories about how our grandparents were drafted to the war or how our parents grew up after the war — but we just grew up looking at textbook histories or oral stories, and we don’t know anything about that. So I feel like my memory about the war is completely different from my family.”
The seeds of her research formed in 2025, when she observed young people her age enthusiastically engaging with nationalist and revolutionary songs at concerts across Vietnam. She plans to continue this research in grad school, with the Jackson School as her top choice for a master’s program.
And for students at the Jackson School hoping to find a sense of belonging, Nguyen offered straightforward advice: make use of office hours, even if just to introduce yourself. In a big house, she noted, there are many ways to move through it.
Across campus, the UW also provides first-generation students with tools and resources to help them navigate college. The university-wide First-Gen Huskies program offers mentorship, success coaching, and scholarship guidance. To learn more about first-generation resources at the UW, visit firstgen.uw.edu.
