"First But Not The Last": The Lived Experiences of Early Career, First Generation Student Affairs Professionals

This study explored the lived experiences of early career, first-generation student affairs professionals. To explore these lived experiences, this study used the narrative inquiry approach to collect stories along with the theoretical framework of Schlossberg’s transition theory. Narrative inquiry and Schlossberg’s transition theory (Anderson et al., 2012) worked in conjunction to provide guidance for the research questions, a framework for how time and experience are constructed, and a basis for understanding what the current research says about the transition experiences of early, career first-generation student affairs professionals. Through the data analysis of the narratives shared by participants, some major themes and subthemes emerged. These themes provided insight through three critical transitional periods: going to and through college, navigating graduate school, and the early career experiences of these first-generation student affairs professionals.