Students who are first generation to college and students from low income backgrounds (FLI students) are essential members of Haverford’s community. While definitions of first generation and low income vary, some of the characteristics of Haverford’s first generation and/or low income students include:

• Students among the first in their families to attend a four-year college
• Students who have parents or guardians with some collegiate experience
• Students who are attending college with the expectation that graduating from Haverford will expand a student’s opportunities for socioeconomic mobility
• Students may have a parent who completed college but grew up with a parent or guardian who did not

Note that not all students who identify as first generation also identify as low income, and vice versa. FLI students’ stories, like all students’ stories, are complex and unique and allowing students to self-define is central.

Each resource and community highlighted within this site may address a particular aspect of FLI experience, and therefore may use different definitions. Fords Firsts, for example, speaks specifically to the experience of students who identify as first generation to college. LIFTFar, on the other hand, uses financial aid data to determine eligibility for resources.