This Fall 2024, over 2 million students in the U.S. will be entering college for the first time. Especially for BIPOC students (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), including those who are working class, immigrants or children of immigrants, queer, and/or students who are the first in their families to attend college, this transition can be a thrilling and stressful time, rife with hopeful expectations, distressing worst-case scenarios, and nervousness about how to best navigate this new life. And, due to various institutional systems and histories, including the continued effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as current global and national conflicts, BIPOC students are encountering specific, and often unacknowledged, forms of distress.  This article reflects on why transitioning to college can be a stressful experience for BIPOC students, as well as how BIPOC freshmen can protect themselves and care for their mental health as they prepare for and progress through the semester. 

Why  the Transition to College Can Be Stressful

The college transition encompasses physical, emotional, and intellectual changes occurring all at once.  Some students are moving and living away from their families for the first time, navigating a campus environment that can feel foreign and cold. For students moving from a predominantly BIPOC community to a predominantly White college institution and geographic location, this transition can be particularly arduous. Students will need to quickly acclimate to the new racial landscape by familiarizing themselves with relevant resources and social supports, learning how to create safety and stability for themselves. For queer BIPOC students, this process will require additional thoughtfulness about their intersecting identities which may be in conflict at different times. As a result, students may experience self-doubt, impostor phenomenon, and stereotype threat as they orient themselves to these new environments (Cokley et al., 2017; Cokley et al., 2018; Deckard, Goosby, & Cheadler, 2022; Peteet, Montgomery, & Weekes, 2015; Steele & Aronson, 1995).  

BIPOC Commuter Students. BIPOC students who live at home and commute each day to college may be overwhelmed by multiple new role shifts throughout their days.  For example, many commuter students work multiple jobs throughout the week and financially contribute to their family, while also caring for elderly and younger family members and pitching in with household responsibilities. For BIPOC students who are immigrants or children of immigrants, these responsibilities may include translation, accompanying family members to doctors appointments, and assisting with legal and financial matters. These responsibilities are all being juggled with the stress of commuting to school, and finding space and time to attend to their academic work (Lui & Rollock, 2019; Marshall & Naumann, 2024). 

BIPOC First Generation College Goers. For BIPOC students who are also the first in their families to attend college, students may be encountering complex and high-stakes decision-making with very little guidance or social support. More specifically, first-generation college goers are tasked with navigating multiple bureaucratic and non-linear systems, as well as new professional and social relationships that are often exclusionary. Identifying what resources are available, finding mentors, and socializing within these spaces can result in feeling isolated, alienated, disheartened, and intimidated, as a result. Many first generation college goers also feel pressure to use their college degree as a tool for social mobility for their family. As a result, the pressure of achieving a specific financial and social outcome can feel momentous (Amirkhan, Manalo Jr., & Velasco, 2022; Deckard, Goosby, & Cheadler, 2022)

What to Do About the Stress

With so many stressors, college students, and BIPOC students in particular, may experience high levels of anxiety and depression throughout their college years (Lumina, 2023a; Lumina, 2023b). However, there are ways to approach wellness and mental health with a preventative lens, so that BIPOC students can prepare themselves for this transition and develop a routine that offers holistic, protective care. Here are a few gentle reminders to consider.

  • Acknowledge the external. The current socio-political climate, and the laws, policies and schools we attend cultivate ecosystems that contribute greatly to our everyday stress. Remember that the stress of functioning in these environments is often due to these external circumstances, and not a sign of your own shortcomings.
  • Reflect on your sense of racial/cultural identity. What are some of your favorite parts of your identities? What do you like about yourself? Are there particular parts of your community’s history that give you a sense of pride? How can you connect with these parts on a regular basis? (Jernigan et al., 2015; French et al., 2019).
  • Get to know your worries. What types of social settings are most stressful for you? Anticipate situations where you’ll need to be extra thoughtful in caring for yourself and slowing down, especially around your identities and experiences as a BIPOC student (Jernigan et al., 2015).
  • Develop a short list of people to go to, to share about your everyday experiences. With the barrage of new systems and relationships, there’s a lot to process. We all need to be witnessed and known! College campuses typically employ mental health counselors who can help you navigate support and resources in the local community, or you can text STEVE to 741741 to be connected with a crisis counselor of color through the Steve Fund 24-7. 
  • Find people who affirm you. Are there identity- or interest-based clubs or organizations on or off-campus that interest you? Be gentle with yourself about these identities, not everyone feels the same way about all their parts, and we often shift our connections to our identities throughout each day (French, 2019; Helms, 1997; Lumina, 2023a). It can take time before relationships can feel consistently comfortable.
  • Attend to your body.  Sleeping, eating, and exercising regularly can help ground you through the ebbs and flows of this year. Check-in regularly with how you’re physically feeling. Are you feeling physically comfortable right now throughout your body? How tired are you feeling throughout the day? Developing a mindfulness (e.g., breathing) practice can also cue you to slow down and check in (French et al., 2019).

Prioritize grace, compassion, and kindness towards yourself.  There will be a lot to process, and disappointment and frustration are all normal and inevitable as transitions reveal new challenges. Care for yourself with gentleness and understanding, and remember that this experience is just the beginning of a long journey. Pace yourself and practice compassion to prevent burnout and harm.

 

References

Amirkhan, J.H., Manalo Jr., R., & Velasco, S.E.  (2022). “Stress overload in first-generation college students: Implications for intervention.” Psychological Services, 20, 363-646. https://doi.org/10.1037/ser0000650 

Cokley, K., Stone, S., Krueger, N., Bailey, M., Garba, R., & Hurst, A.  (2018).  “Self-esteem as a mediator of the link between perfectionism and the imposter phenomenon.” Personality and Individual Differences, 135, 292-297. https://doi-org.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/10.1016/j.paid.2018.07.032

Cokley, K., Smith, L., Bernard, D., Hurst, A., Jackson, S., Stone, S., Awosogba, O., Saucer, C., Bailey, M., & Roberts, D.  (2017).  “Imposter feelings as a moderator and mediator of the relationship between perceived discrimination and mental health among racial/ethnic minority college students.”  Journal of Counseling Psychology, 64, 141-154. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/cou0000198 

Deckard, F.M., Goosby, B.J., & Cheadler, J.E. (2022). “Debt stress, college stress: Implications for Black and Latinx students’ mental health.” Race and Social Problems, 14, 238-253. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-021-09346-z 

French, B. H., Lewis, J. A., Mosley, D. V., Adames, H. Y., Chavez-Dueñas, N. Y., Chen, G. A., & Neville, H. A. (2019). Toward a psychological framework of radical healing in Communities of Color. The Counseling Psychologist, 48, 14-46.  https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000019843506   

Helms, J.E. (1997). An update of Helms’ White and people of color racial identity models. In J.G. Ponterotto, J.M. Casas, L.A. Suzuki, & C.M. Alexander (Eds.). Handbook of Multicultural Counseling, (pp. 181-198). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Jernigan, M. M., Green, C. E., Perez-Gualdron, Liu, M. M, Henze, K. T., Chen, C….Helms, J. E. (2015).#racialtraumaisreal. Institute for the Study and Promotion of Race and Culture, Chestnut Hill, MA.  www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/schools/LynchSchool_sites/isprc/pdf/racialtraumaisrealManuscript.pdf  

Lui, P.P., & Rollock, D. (2019). “Assessing intergenerational cultural conflict among Asian Americans: Comparing psychometric properties of key measures.” Asian American Journal of Psychology, 10, 33-46. https://psycnet-apa-org.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/doi/10.1037/aap0000118 

Marshall, S. R., & Naumann, L. P. (2024). “Is it worth it?”: Academic-related guilt among college student caregivers.” Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. Advance online publication. https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000605

Peteet, B.J., Montgomery, L., & Weekes, J.C.  (2015). “Predictors of imposter phenomenon among talented ethnic minority undergraduate students.” The Journal of Negro Education, 84, 175-186.  https://psycnet-apa-org.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/doi/10.7709/jnegroeducation.84.2.0175 

Steele, C.M., & Aronson, J.  (1995). “Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69, 797-811.  https://psycnet-apa-org.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/doi/10.1037/0022-3514.69.5.797 

Stressed Out and Stopping Out: The Mental Health Crisis in Higher Education. (2023b). Report by The Lumina Foundation – Gallup. https://www.gallup.com/analytics/468986/state-of-higher-education.aspx 

The State of Higher Education. (2023a). Report by The Lumina Foundation – Gallup. https://www.gallup.com/analytics/468986/state-of-higher-education.aspx