Objective:

This article explores the experiences of 32 first-generation immigrant and refugee students as they transition into and out of community college. The challenges students face and the resources on which they draw in their educational pursuits are viewed through Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital.

Method:

This project utilizes an applied ethnographic approach that primarily elicited participant-observation and interview data.

Results:

Findings demonstrate that prospective community college students articulated uncertainty about the college process and concern over the quality of community colleges. Current and former community college students validated these concerns as they described their struggles to overcome both in- and out-of-school challenges. In many cases, such obstacles resulted in the leveling of previously high aspirations.

Contribution:

Although the growing number of immigrant and refugee students in the United States are disproportionately represented at community colleges, little is known about their experiences in these institutions. This article adds to our understanding of immigrant and refugee students’ experiences in community colleges through their own words.

中文翻译：

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愿望和机会：社区学院的第一代移民和难民

客观的：

本文探讨了 32 名第一代移民和难民学生在转入和转出社区大学时的经历。通过布迪厄的文化资本理论，可以看到学生面临的挑战以及他们在教育追求中所利用的资源。

方法：

该项目利用了一种应用人种学方法，该方法主要引发了参与者观察和访谈数据。

结果：

调查结果表明，未来的社区大学学生表达了对大学过程的不确定性以及对社区大学质量的担忧。当前和以前的社区学院学生在描述他们克服校内和校外挑战的斗争时证实了这些担忧。在许多情况下，这些障碍导致以前的高期望落空。

贡献：

尽管美国越来越多的移民和难民学生在社区大学中的人数不成比例，但人们对他们在这些机构中的经历知之甚少。这篇文章通过他们自己的话增加了我们对移民和难民学生在社区大学的经历的理解。