How a coach can empower first generation students
Since 1 October, Sabina Chiță has been working as a coach for first-generation students in Physics. But who are first-generation students, and why might they need a coach? Six questions to Sabina Chiță.
1. What is a first-generation student?
‘These are students who are the first in their family to attend university,’ Chiță explains. ‘Making the step into academic education can be especially challenging for them. The pressure of studying, combined with the stress of a new way of life, can feel overwhelming. They cannot turn to family members with questions about their studies, so they often do not fully understand how student life works. It usually takes time before they feel at home in the academic community.’
2. What kinds of problems do these students face?
‘Let me give you an example straight away,’ Chiță says. ‘From experience, I know that first-generation students are sometimes less likely to ask questions during lectures. Many of them prefer not to draw attention to themselves and do not always speak their mind. We want to help these students build the confidence to stand up for themselves.’
‘I want to support this group of students without putting a negative label on them. On the contrary, I want to help them find their strength,’ Chiță says.
Their questions range from very practical matters, such as ‘How should I contact my lecturers?’, to concerns about early results: ‘My studies aren’t going well — how can I improve my planning skills?’
3. Why is a coach important for them?
‘We want to prevent feelings of exclusion, isolation or low self-esteem, because these can seriously undermine the learning process,’ says Subodh Patil, physicist at the Leiden Institute of Physics. ‘What lecturers may see as obvious is not always obvious to every student entering higher education.’
The coach for first-generation students serves as an additional point of contact and is therefore an essential source of support. ‘We want to prevent first-generation students from dropping out because they lack the right support,’ Chiță emphasises.
4. What does a coach for first-generation students actually do?
The support the coach offers is always accessible and tailored to the individual. ‘That is exactly the strength of this approach. Students can simply drop by, call or send me an email. We talk about how their studies are going and work together to identify what the real issue is.’
I hold office hours by appointment. You can contact me at: chita@physics.leidenuniv.nl
Chiță continues: ‘Of course, I explain things when needed. Together we think of suitable answers to questions or solutions to problems. Sometimes one conversation is already enough to give someone a boost, but if necessary, we meet several times.’
5. Do you do this work on your own?
‘Together with others — absolutely,’ Chiță replies. ‘My role is not a replacement, but an addition to the existing support network around students, such as the study adviser and student mentors.’
The study adviser supports all students and, for example, has regular meetings with first-year students about their study results. ‘During those meetings, the adviser may suggest that some students talk to me as a coach. These conversations are never compulsory, but they are a quick and accessible way to address problems.’
6. Why do you want to do this work so much?
‘Of course I want to help first-generation students,’ Chiță says. She was once a first-generation student herself. ‘If I could start my life over, I would study physics again. It gives me great satisfaction when I can help young physics students improve the way they study.’
According to Subodh Patil, Chiță is the ideal person for this role. ‘She brings not only a wealth of experience, but also genuine kindness, enthusiasm and strong personal commitment to her students. That makes her a real asset. I truly look forward to seeing what we can achieve together.’
Sabina Chiță studied physics in Romania and later earned a PhD in astronomy at Utrecht University. She then worked briefly at the TU Delft Reactor Institute. Since 2015, she has been teaching physics and programming at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, in the language transition programme ‘Foundation year for international students’. In addition, Sabina Chiță works one day a week at Contact.VWO of LION as coordinator of research projects that secondary-school pupils carry out at the university.