Video Interviews
These interviews feature community college graduates (and near graduates) and first-generation students reflecting on their academic journeys in their own words. Each video offers insight into the motivations, challenges, and decisions that shaped their experience—from first-day anxiety to choosing majors, managing work and school, and building relationships on campus. You’re invited to listen deeply, pause where something resonates, and share these stories with students or colleagues who may benefit from them. When viewing these interviews, please:
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Durel
FROM COLLEGE DROPOUT TO YALE UNIVERSITY
Durel, who graduated in 2018, shares how he struggled in college the first time, and how he turned it around on his second try. He discusses the importance of mindset, and candidly shares his experience with anxiety attacks. He found both tutoring and club involvement to be important to his success. Having also served as a tutor himself, he offers tips on how to use tutoring effectively. In his own words, he went from being “bad at math” to succeeding in engineering at a challenging university and he believes you can too.
Selena
OVERCOMING ANXIETY AND ENGINEERING HER OWN SUCCESS
Selena graduated with an AS in science in 2016. At the time of this interview, she was majoring in electrical engineering at University of Illinois in Champagne. Selena’s parents grew up in Mexico and did not have access to education; her “big why” for attending college is to honor her father. She also traces her motivation back to a childhood memory, which showed her the importance of education. Selena’s biggest tip for incoming students is to learn about fixed versus growth mindset. Selena speaks highly of the help she got for her test-taking anxiety at the Wellness Center. She also used a number of other resources including office hours and tutoring.
Jazmine
PUSHING THROUGH CHALLENGES AND ASKING FOR HELP
Jazmine graduated in May of 2017 with a concentration in biology. She then transferred to Governor’s State, where she to pursued biology. Her parents did not attend college, but encouraged her to go. She discusses the challenge of her grandfather being diagnosed with cancer, getting over her nervousness about asking for help, and how she overcame a particularly tough class. Supports Jasmine encourages students to use include: tutoring, faculty office hours, and fellow students.
Brandon
FROM DOING ‘EVERYTHING YOU SHOULDN’T DO’ AS A STUDENT TO BECOMING A FACULTY MENTOR
Brandon teaches in the Business Department at Harold Washington College. He is a first-generation college student who attended the University of Missouri and majored in journalism and advertising. Brandon recounts some challenges he had while in college, and reports that his biggest obstacle in college was developing confidence that he belonged there. While a student, he found it extremely important to develop relationships with faculty members. His message to students: “utilize your faculty members.”
Oscar
BUILDING CONFIDENCE THROUGH CAMPUS INVOLVEMENT AND INTEGRITY
Oscar graduated in 2024, earning his degree in part to honor his parents, who never had the opportunity to attend college. He has since joined the army to see the world and gain new experiences before deciding on his next step. In college, he was initially reluctant to seek help but soon discovered the value of campus resources and now urges students to use them from the start. He made use of tutoring, TRIO, and office hours, and especially enjoyed his role as a campus ambassador—an experience he highly recommends. College, he says, helped him become less shy and more confident; he even briefly served as student government president. He encourages students to focus on truly learning and acting with integrity rather than relying too heavily on AI.
Precious
DISCOVERING THE POWER OF RESOURCES AND SELF-ADVOCACY
Precious graduated in 2025 with an associate degree in business administration and plans to transfer once she hears back about scholarship opportunities. Her first exposure to college came years earlier, when she accompanied her grandmother to classes. Now, her goal is to become an entrepreneur to help communities in need. She reflects on the challenges of transitioning from high school to college. After initially taking on too many classes, she found the rhythm that works best for her and has become skilled at using campus resources, including those that students sometimes overlook. (She shares her tips in this video.) Precious believes college builds resilience and the ability to advocate for oneself.
Sara
HOW A COMMITMENT TO USING EVERY RESOURCE LED TO SARA’S FIRST A IN MATH AND ACCEPTANCE TO SMITH COLLEGE
Sara graduated in May of 2018 with a concentration in Political Science and transferred to Smith College to study political science and film production. Sara talks about her experience first dropping out of college and then coming back. She provides some ideas for prioritizing time while in school. Sara used a number of supports while in college, including: tutoring, the Wellness Center, faculty, and student clubs.
Chunyan
BREAKING EXPECTATIONS AND FINDING HER VOICE
Chunyan graduated in 2017 with an Associate’s in General Studies with the plan to continue at a four-year university. She is a first-generation college student and an immigrant from China. By attending college, Chunyan went against her grandmother’s expectations of women, but feels that the choice to attend college allows her to be independent and build a strong future for herself. She has had some academic challenges since English is not her first language, but has used resources to overcome this challenge including the tutoring center, the Writing Lab, friends, and faculty office hours. She finds faculty office hours to be particularly important because then her teachers know that she cares about her education.
Daniel
BALANCING WORK AND SCHOOL TO GET TO HIS DREAM COLLEGE
Daniel graduated from Harold Washington in 2016 with a concentration in business and entrepreneurship. He is now at Columbia University in New York. Daniel was born in Mexico City and came to the United States when he was eight. Daniel’s biggest challenge was that he worked 30-40 hours a week while in college. At times, prioritizing school meant giving up social time. In order to get into his dream college, Daniel retook some of his courses to raise his GPA. Daniel didn’t use the Wellness Center until he transferred to Columbia. He did however use faculty office hours and club involvement to stay motivated.
Alexis
FINDING SUPPORT AND A NEW PERSPECTIVE THE SECOND TIME AROUND
Alexis graduated from Harold Washington College in the Spring of 2014 with a concentration in social work. She plans to return to school to get a degree in early childhood education. She is a first-generation college student. After high school, she went away to a four-year college, but ended up dropping out because when she hit an academic obstacle, she didn’t know to reach out to others for support and ended up feeling isolated. When she restarted at the City Colleges, she came with a new perspective and now considers asking for help to be a necessary part of being a successful college student. Alexis found the Writing Lab, and her classmates to be helpful resources.
Nancy
OVERCOMING PRIDE AND FINDING SUPPORT
Nancy will graduate from Harold Washington in Spring of 2019 with a concentration in communications. She is a first-generation college student and a first-generation American. She recounts her early struggles: failing a philosophy test, and working to get over her pride to ask her professors for help. But, she explains, she realized that even her most intimidating professor was once a student too. Nancy appreciated the supports at Harold Washington and used the Wellness Center, faculty office hours, student clubs, support from peers, study groups, and other campus resources.