“Nobody Told Me”: First-Generation Music Educators’ Soundtracks to Navigating the Academy

Abstract

First-generation college students (FGCSs) are the first in their families to receive a baccalaureate degree. As a result, they face multiple sociological, familial, and cultural challenges as they navigate their college and professional environments. The purpose of this study is to explore the cognitive soundtracks that FGCSs create to navigate the music academy, university culture, and their first few years of teaching. We conducted an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis with five first-generation music educators who successfully completed a bachelor’s degree in music education. We present the findings as individual soundtracks curated under a playlist titled “Nobody Told Me,” representing participants’ collective lived experiences. Findings suggest that FGCSs struggle with access to material resources, navigating hidden curricula, familial and cultural pressures, and an overarching fear of failure. Based on these findings, we present recommendations for programmatic changes and mentorship for music education programs and schools of music to better support FGCSs.