The project aims to provide the first evidence in England on ‘first in family’ students, using Next Steps, Millennium Cohort Study and Higher Education Statistics Authority data. Making use of advanced statistical methods, the research team identify the differences between ‘first in family’ and ‘non-first in family’ students, to explore the following research questions that will inform the widening participation agenda:

• Do ‘first in family’ young people have different experiences at university in terms of institution attended, subject studied, and probability of dropout?
• How does the ‘first in family’ measure compare to other widening participation indicators?
• Are there differences by ‘first in family’ status on the graduate labour market in terms of working hours and labour market returns compared to peers whose parents had graduated?
• Are there any substantive differences in non-cognitive skills such as locus of control, academic self-concept, work ethic and self-esteem of the potential ‘first in family’ students?
• Has the proportion of potential ‘first in family’ students changed among the younger generation and across the home nations?