The First-Gen Guide to Grad School: Advice from One Student to Another

By John D. Kincaid

A compassionate and encouraging companion, The First-Gen Guide to Grad School has a message for all who aspire to keep learning and developing professionally: You belong.

For first-generation college students, navigating undergraduate life is hard enough. But applying to graduate school? That's an even taller mountain to climb. Accessible and inclusive, offering practical advice for everyone from community college transfers to adult learners with jobs and kids, The First-Gen Guide to Grad School empowers all students to pursue their educational and career goals.

Before John D. Kincaid became a sociologist, he was a first-gen student struggling to make grades and decode the unwritten rules of academia. With humor and heart, he demystifies the process of applying to master's, certificate, and PhD programs and tackles psychological barriers like financial anxiety and self-doubt. There are strategies here for choosing schools, writing personal statements, and understanding timelines and funding. Drawing on a decade of experience running application workshops, Kincaid pairs helpful checklists and examples with candid stories of what grad school is really like.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0520428099
• ISBN13: 9780520428096
• Release Date: May 2026
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Length: 312 Pages