Advice for first-generation students applying to college this fall

If you’re a first-generation student, know that you’re not alone. “About 15 million students are enrolled in a postsecondary institution. Thirty percent of those students”—some 4.5 million—“are low-income, first-generation students,” says Chelsea Jones, associate director of student programs at I’m First, an online resource center for first-generation college students.

So how do you figure it all out and make smart choices? Here are four things you can do before applying to college this fall.

1. RALLY SOMEONE TO BE IN YOUR CORNER.

2. SPEAK WITH YOUR COUNSELOR ABOUT LOCAL COLLEGE-BOUND PROGRAMS.

3. ATTEND FLY-IN PROGRAMS AND COLLEGE FAIRS.

4. FIND SUPPORT AMONG YOUR PEERS AND OTHER FIRST-GENERATION STUDENTS.

Read the full article at USA Today: http://college.usatoday.com/2014/10/23/first-generation-students-applying-to-college/