HHH Column: First-generation students in the Dutch higher education system: challenges, burnout, and the emergence of student support initiatives by Caro Suringar
The HHH column is a monthly blog in which History, Health & Healing members share their thoughts on research, current affairs, or anything to do with medical history. Each edition is written by a different member – in due time, we hope to offer everybody a chance to publish a contribution. This month, the floor is for Caro Suringar, PhD researcher in the Humanities at the Open University, Heerlen. In this column Caro introduces her PhD project about the rise of first-generation student and initiatives in the Dutch higher education system, focusing also on a suggested risk of burnout among this group.
First-generation students in the Dutch higher education system: challenges, burnout, and the emergence of student support initiatives
Caro Suringar
First-generation students are defined as ‘students whose parents did not attend university’. Among all Dutch students, an estimated 30 to 40% are first-generation students.1 First-generation students not only navigate the challenges inherent in higher education but also face the added complexities of breaking familial and societal barriers. Research suggests that these stressors can make first-generation students more vulnerable to burnout, a phenomenon that has become increasingly prominent in discussions about student well-being.2,3 Due to recent changes in the Dutch higher education system, such as the introduction of the binding study advice4 and the shift from a grant-based system to student loans -measures that hit first-generation students extra hard – targeted policies to support these students seem particularly important. Since 2010, multiple universities in the Netherlands have implemented initiatives such as introduction programmes, mentoring schemes, and financial support to help students purchase study materials like books and laptops, as well as supporting studying abroad. These initiatives are there to support first-generation students as they make their way through university. To understand their origins in the Netherlands, it’s helpful to first look at developments in the U.S. After this, I will introduce my own PhD project, which focuses on the experience of burnout among first-generation students in the Dutch context.
Historical background
For a long time, the Dutch education system proved unable to provide equal opportunities for working-class children. They often left school early to start working, while children of educated parents went to university after high school. The introduction of the Mammoth Act in 1968 was intended to prevent the waste of talent by making education more flexible and raising the compulsory education age. Mulo and hbs gave way to mavo, havo and vwo,5 which made switching from one level to another easier. In the 1960s, Dutch society faced significant social and economic changes such as the shift from an agrarian economy to an industrial and service-oriented one, combined with rapid technological advancements.6There was a growing need for a more educated workforce and an increasing demand for an education system that could fulfil this need. The Mammoth Act was a response to these changes, aiming to modernise the education system and align it more closely with the demands of the labour market and society at that time. Although countering social inequality was not the primary motive for the introduction of the Mammoth Act, this aspect became increasingly important in the 1970s. After the implementation of the law, it became clear that the new system had potential to increase the accessibility of education and thus contribute to a more equal society. By the 1970s, the goal of democratizing education—ensuring that university was no longer the exclusive domain of the elite—became more explicit. As a result, by 1970, the number of university students had tripled compared to previous decades.7
The emergence of first-generation student initiatives in the Netherlands was significantly influenced by models from the United States. First-generation student initiatives in the US responded to historical and demographic developments in higher education that took place over the last 60 years. The first event related to this, was the emergence of open enrolment policies.8 This form of admission is now used by many public junior colleges and community colleges in the US and differs from the selective admission policies of most private liberal arts colleges and research universities. A second, related event to these developments was the establishment of the federal TRIO programs in 1964.9 TRIO is not an acronym; it refers to a number (originally three, now eight) of US federal programs to increase access to higher education for economically disadvantaged students. The goal of these TRIO programs is to “serve and assist low-income individuals, first-generation students, and individuals with disabilities to progress through the academic pipeline from middle school to post-baccalaureate programs.’’8 The open enrolment and the TRIO programs resulted in a more diverse student population in terms of demographic factors such as race, ethnicity, socio-economic position, age and parental level of education.10
Emergence of first-generation student initiatives in the Netherlands
In 2003, Echo, a Dutch expertise centre on diversity policy, participated in an exchange program with the US Council for Opportunity in Education. During this exchange, they were introduced to the concept of ‘first generation students’ in the American context. Mary Tupan-Wenno, who worked at the Echo that time, wrote: “The term ‘first generation’, not to be confused with first-generation migrant, is a much less stigmatising way of classifying students, and takes into account the fact that when students come from an environment where parents did not study, they are more likely to be inadequately prepared for the opportunities offered by higher education.”11 Inspired by these insights, several Dutch universities started developing targeted programs for first-generation students. VU Amsterdam was the first to design a program in 2010, initially funded with its own resources and later supported by the government. Erasmus University Rotterdam followed in 2013, and Leiden University in 2017. These programs, such as the VU’s Better Prepared, aim to bridge the gap for first-generation students by providing tailored support, mentoring, and preparation courses.12
Researching burnout without falling in the deficiency-trap
Studies suggest that first-generation students are more prone to feelings of burnout than ‘traditional’ students.9,10 Reasons why first-generation students may be more prone to feelings of burnout than traditional students, are because they often have financial pressures, lack of academic support, family obligations and part-time work commitments.13, 14In exploratory interviews I had with first-generation graduates who have had a burnout, they told me they experience anxiety, stress, fatigue, self-doubt and a sense of not belonging. In addition, they often lack role models who have studied at university, which is perhaps making it more difficult to find a way through university without exhaustion. Often the term ‘first -generation student’ is used as a singular identity,15 overlooking the fact that multiple social dimensions (such as race, gender and class) shape experiences of first-generation students. That is why in my research, I conduct interviews with first-generation students, who have had a burnout, using an intersectional approach, keeping in mind multiple social dimensions of identity and their impact on experiencing burnout. Research on first-generation students often emphasizes the deficiencies and vulnerabilities of these students in coping with adversity.16 This often overlooks the strengths of first-generation students. Without denying the fragility of life, my research aims to address the meaning of resilience in coping with burnout among first-generation graduates.
[1] Van den Broek, A., Van de Wiel, E., Pronk, T., & Sijbers, R. (2006). Studentenmonitor 2005. Technical report, Nijmegen: ITS.
[2] Kundu, A. (2019). Understanding college “burnout” from a social perspective: Reigniting the agency of low-income racial minority strivers towards achievement. The Urban Review, 51(5), 677-698.Griffiths, R. (2013). The Economy and Politics of the Netherlands since 1945. Springer Science & Business Media.
[3] Cawcutt, K. A., Clance, P., & Jain, S. (2021). Bias, burnout, and imposter phenomenon: the negative impact of under-recognized Intersectionality. Women’s Health Reports, 2(1), 643-647.
[4] As a student in the Netherlands, you need to obtain a minimum of European Credits in your first year to be able to continue your studies. This is a mechanism used to determine whether students can continue their studies based on their performance.
[5] Mulo (1920-1974) was a four-year secondary school offering practical and theoretical training, while hbs (1863-1974) was a six-year secondary school focused on theoretical education. These were replaced by mavo (four years, preparing for vocational education), havo (five years, preparing for universities of applied sciences), and vwo (six years, preparing for universities).
[6] Griffiths, R. (2013). The Economy and Politics of the Netherlands since 1945. Springer Science & Business Media.
[7] Canton, E., & De Jong, F. (2005). The demand for higher education in the Netherlands, 1950–1999. Economics of Education Review, 24(6), 651-663.
[8] Breivik, P. S. (1977). Open Admissions and the Academic Library. Chicago: American Library Association.
[9] U.S. Department of Education, “50th Anniversary of the Federal TRIO Programs: Celebrating 50 Years of Providing Hope and Opportunity for Success,” 2014, 3,
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/trio50anniv–factsheet.pdf.
[10] Office of Postsecondary Education, “Federal TRIO Programs – Home Page,” 2024, https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/index.html.
[11] Tupan-Wenno, M. O. (2008) Weg met het deficiëntiedenken! Tijdschrift voor Hoger Onderwijs, 28,(1).
[12] Baumhoër, D. (2020). In de buitenbaan: de inhaalspurt van eerstegeneratiestudenten. https://www.groene.nl/artikel/in-de-buitenbaan
[13] Garriott, P. O., & Nisle, S. (2018). Stress, coping, and perceived academic goal progress in first-generation college students: The role of institutional supports. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 11(4), 436-450.
[14] Simmons, L. D., Taylor, L. C., Anderson, K., & Neely-Barnes, S. L. (2018). Comparative experiences of first-and continuing-generation social work students. Journal of Social Work Education, 54(3), 480-491.
[15] Nguyen, T. & Nguyen, B. M. D. (2018). Is the ‘’First-Generation Student’’ Term Useful for Understanding Inequality? The Role of Intersectionality in Illuminating the Implications of an Accepted – Yet Unchallenged – Term in Review of Research in Education, Vol. 42, pp. 146-176.
[16] Ilett, D. (2019). A critical review of LIS literature on first-generation students. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 19(1), 177-196.