--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was a first-generation college student…" description: "\"I was a first-generation college student as well as the first in our family to be born in America - my parents were born in Cuba - and we didn't yet kn..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg" --- # I was a first-generation college student as well as the… ![“I was a first-generation college student as well as the first in our family to be born in America - my parents were born in Cuba - and we didn't yet know that families were supposed to leave pretty much right after they unloaded your stuff from the car.” quote by Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg) > “I was a first-generation college student as well as the first in our family to be born in America - my parents were born in Cuba - and we didn't yet know that families were supposed to leave pretty much right after they unloaded your stuff from the car.” [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. First‑generation immigrants face cultural dislocation and unexpected responsibilities, highlighting the challenges of navigating new identities. **In simple terms:** Immigrants often juggle new cultures and family duties. Key Takeaway Seek community support and self‑care. Themes immigration identity family culture shock Mood reflective hopeful Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - college life - family integration - career planning - mental health Key Concepts sociology psychology first‑generation experience Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance cultural expectations? - What resources help you adapt? A Different Perspective Balancing expectations can cause stress and isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [College student](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college-student/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parents/) ## Related quotes > [Both my parents came with their parents during the revolution in Cuba. Both my parents were born in Cuba. They left everything over there.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominik-garcia-lorido/both-my-parents-came-with-their-parents-during-the-revolution-in-cuba/) [Dominik Garcia-Lorido](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominik-garcia-lorido/) > [There are pockets of liberal, affluent America where parents don't want their kids vaccinated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-lauer/there-are-pockets-of-liberal-affluent-america-where-parents-don-t/) [Matt Lauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-lauer/) > [I engage with New York and America but my parents pretty much hang out in this radius of Long Island where their friends are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himanshu-suri/i-engage-with-new-york-and-america-but-my-parents-pretty-much-hang/) [Himanshu Suri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himanshu-suri/) > [My mythic version of America is very much about parents and children, and in my experience, the suburban setting is where that particular drama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/my-mythic-version-of-america-is-very-much-about-parents-and-children/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [My first language is both English and Spanish. My mom was raised in Los Angeles, so with her we spoke English, but my father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jencarlos-canela/my-first-language-is-both-english-and-spanish-my-mom-was-raised-in/) [Jencarlos Canela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jencarlos-canela/) > [I'm half-Cuban, my mother was born in Cuba and came here as a teenager, so it's got a lot of Latin influence to it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-lynn-sigler/i-m-half-cuban-my-mother-was-born-in-cuba-and-came-here-as-a-teenager/) [Jamie Lynn Sigler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-lynn-sigler/) > [My dad was born in Cuba and my mother's family is Puerto Rican. But my parents are both extremely proud to be American citizens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nolan-arenado/my-dad-was-born-in-cuba-and-my-mother-s-family-is-puerto-rican-but-my/) [Nolan Arenado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nolan-arenado/) > [I was born in Cuba but was made in the USA.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustavo-perez-firmat/i-was-born-in-cuba-but-was-made-in-the-usa/) [Gustavo Perez Firmat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustavo-perez-firmat/) > [I was born in Cuba. At the age of 14 years of age I was involved in a revolution. We were suffering from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-was-born-in-cuba-at-the-age-of-14-years-of-age-i-was-involved-in-a/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [I was born in Cuba, and my parents were tropical agronomists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/i-was-born-in-cuba-and-my-parents-were-tropical-agronomists/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [Being born in Cuba, a country where freedom of speech is non-existent, it's startling to observe how Venezuela, where I was happily raised, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-conchita-alonso/being-born-in-cuba-a-country-where-freedom-of-speech-is-non-existent/) [Maria Conchita Alonso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-conchita-alonso/) > [I used to work for a non-profit organization where I worked as a mentor and a counselor to first-generation college student and they kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-used-to-work-for-a-non-profit-organization-where-i-worked-as-a/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I'm a Brazilian - full blood, parents born and raised, and I lived there for a little bit - but I didn't grow up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camila-mendes/i-m-a-brazilian-full-blood-parents-born-and-raised-and-i-lived-there/) [Camila Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camila-mendes/) > [My parents were both born in Virginia, of undistinguished families - second families, perhaps I should say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/my-parents-were-both-born-in-virginia-of-undistinguished-families/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [My parents were born into a secular country. They met in Turkey's top medical school, moved to America in the nineteen-seventies, and became researchers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/my-parents-were-born-into-a-secular-country-they-met-in-turkey-s-top/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) ## More by Jennine Capó Crucet > [I really started considering myself a writer when I was about seven or eight years old. I wrote stories from my dreams and kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-really-started-considering-myself-a-writer-when-i-was-about-seven/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [My husband is a huge source of support and love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/my-husband-is-a-huge-source-of-support-and-love/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I remember being so homesick and realizing that where I came from was not something that existed in the cultural imagination outside the city.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-remember-being-so-homesick-and-realizing-that-where-i-came-from-was/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > ['Some day,' I said, 'I will be an author.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/some-day-i-said-i-will-be-an-author/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [You leave home, and then when you come back, you have a kind of perspective that you didn't have before that in some way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/you-leave-home-and-then-when-you-come-back-you-have-a-kind-of/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I used to work for a non-profit organization where I worked as a mentor and a counselor to first-generation college student and they kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-used-to-work-for-a-non-profit-organization-where-i-worked-as-a/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [My parents were more surprised that I wanted to go away for school than anything. They didn't really understand the benefits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/my-parents-were-more-surprised-that-i-wanted-to-go-away-for-school/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I have not been to Cuba, though if you count the stories my grandma told me growing up, I've been there in my head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-have-not-been-to-cuba-though-if-you-count-the-stories-my-grandma/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [It seems disrespectful to my parents who left... to hear their story over and over again which always ends with... 'and I'll never go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/it-seems-disrespectful-to-my-parents-who-left-to-hear-their-story/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I've had lots of wonderful people help motivate me over the years to work hard and write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-ve-had-lots-of-wonderful-people-help-motivate-me-over-the-years-to/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [When I left for college, my mom really latched on to the dog; She started buying him little outfits and calling him our brother,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/when-i-left-for-college-my-mom-really-latched-on-to-the-dog-she/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [I was in Minnesota and Illinois when I wrote 'How to Leave Hialeah.' When I come to Miami, I'm happy. I don't need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-was-in-minnesota-and-illinois-when-i-wrote-how-to-leave-hialeah/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [People really saw themselves in a big way in Elian Gonzalez's story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/people-really-saw-themselves-in-a-big-way-in-elian-gonzalez-s-story/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) > [While my college had done an excellent job recruiting me, I had no road map for what I was supposed to do once I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/while-my-college-had-done-an-excellent-job-recruiting-me-i-had-no/) [Jennine Capó Crucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) [Explore all 15 Jennine Capó Crucet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was a first-generation college student as well as the first in our family to be born in America - my parents were born in Cuba - and we didn't yet know that families were supposed to leave pretty much right after they unloaded your stuff from the car.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jennine Capó Crucet" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-was-a-first-generation-college-student-as-well-as-the-first-in-our/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-was-a-first-generation-college-student-as-well-as-the-first-in-our/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/jennine-cap-crucet-32883_america_i-was-a-first-generation-college-student_2230606.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was a first-generation college student as well as the first in our family to be born in America - my…” — Jennine Capó Crucet", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jennine Capó Crucet", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennine-cap-crucet/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was a first-generation college student...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-was-a-first-generation-college-student-as-well-as-the-first-in-our/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennine-cap-crucet/i-was-a-first-generation-college-student-as-well-as-the-first-in-our/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```