Backgrounds and Characteristics of First-Generation College Students in Taiwan

American researchers, and in particular the National Center for Educational Statistics of the U.S. Department of Education, have found first-generation college students (FGCSs)-students whose parents are not college-educated-to be dissimilar from more traditional college students, and to be at a disadvantage in several respects. To understand whether FGCSs in Taiwan face a similar situation, this study investigated the backgrounds and characteristics of FGCSs in Taiwan. Using data drawn from the 2005 Freshman Survey in the Taiwan Higher Education Database, this study compared FGCSs with non-FGCSs on five issues. The major findings were as follows: First, the FGCSs in Taiwan, as compared with the "traditional" college students in Taiwan, were more likely to be female, to come from low-income families, and to be less likely to have a father who came from mainland China. Second, FGCSs were more likely to be on the vocational and technical track rather than the general education track, and to study at private colleges and universities. Third, FGCSs on average got lower scores on the standardized college entrance tests. Fourth, in choosing schools and majors, FGCSs were concerned more about costs and scholarships, school locations and job opportunities, and less about a school's prestige or their own academic interests and abilities. Fifth, Taiwan's FGCSs placed greater importance on "being successful in one's own business" and "having a happy family," and cared less about goals associated with wealth, achievement, status, and spiritual life. They were less likely to pursue advanced study after they graduated. The backgrounds and characteristics of FGCSs in Taiwan turned out to have much in common with their American counterparts, and supported expectations based on "cultural and social capital" concepts.