Liminality
Liminality is a critical framework to highlight, especially when discussing marginalized populations. Liminality in the context of space and place in higher education research is considered a condition between two periods of active social participation, a transitional or indeterminate state between culturally defined stages of a person's life (Cook-Sather & Alter, 2011). As Field and Morgan-Klein say, studenthood itself is a liminal title due to the fact that this temporal identity focuses on the growth mindset of the individual. It is vital to state that as students are in the liminal part of their lives while working towards completing a higher education degree, it is vital to identify the factors in which higher education institutions play a part in providing the space and place for students to thrive.
In the context of first-generation college students, liminality is a term that in particular is important to this demographic of students due to the complexities of juggling between "two worlds", which significantly alters the liminal transitional process. Common identities and circumstances regarding first-generation college students involve:
- First-generation students are more likely to be older, come from minority backgrounds, and have a disability (Bui, 2002).
- First-generation students are more likely to be non-native English speakers, immigrants (i.e., have been born outside of the United States), single parents, and financially independent from their parents (Bui, 2002).
- First-generation students are also more likely than non-first-generation students to have delayed entry into post-secondary education after high school, live off campus, attend college closer to home, attend part-time (i.e., not taking a full load of credits), and work full time during enrollment in college (Stebleton, Soria, Huesman, 2011).
- Nontraditional students are more likely to be married and have children with heavier family and financial responsibilities than traditional students (Birmingham, Wadsworth, Lassetter, Graff, Lauren, Hung, 2021).
With that being said, first-generation college students experience significant societal marginalization, which can complicate their liminal identities. As explained in the podcast, because of student circumstances, this particular demographic of students experienced even more societal inequities when the COVID-19 pandemic began.