A cross-sequential study of academic readiness and coping strategies among first-generation college students

The transition from high school to college has embedded challenges, particularly for first-generation students. The study examined the overtime relationship and level of academic readiness and coping strategies among first-year, first-generation, and continuing-generation college students. Another objective was to examine the gender differences in the study variable. A cross-sequential design was used to collect data during college entry and 3 months after the baseline assessment. The differences in the levels of readiness and coping were examined based on participants' generation status and gender. Generation status played a significant role in shaping readiness and coping strategies, and this association was more vital for the continuing generation than for the first-generation college students. As hypothesized, the findings show that first-generation college students were less ready and used poor coping strategies than continuing-generation college students at Time 1. However, this difference disappeared 3 months later between the two cohorts. The overall scores of readiness and coping increased from Time 1 to Time 2. Gender comparison showed that irrespective of being FGCS or CGCS, girls were more prepared than boys at the time of entering college, and boys surpassed girls in using coping strategies to overcome academic issues. Limitations, implications, and recommendations are discussed.