Valli Ramaswamy is using data to support first generation students

Master’s student Valli Ramaswamy wants to use data to give back to her fellow first generation students.

Alongside her MSc in Data Science at City, University of London, she is an Impact Analyst for the social enterprise FirstGens.

As the first in her immediate family to go into higher education and achieve a graduate degree, Valli understands the unique challenges this group of students face.

“First generation students can quickly feel overwhelmed and underprepared for university if they are not supported from their first year,” Valli says.

Not having parents or carers with prior knowledge of how universities work means these students are entering higher education with some gaps in their knowledge – and may experience what author Harriet Coombs describes as a “cultural shock” in the report 'First-In-Family Students' published by the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI).

To combat this, law graduate and first generation student Alaya Holloway founded the startup FirstGens, which provides a learning and development programme for first generation undergraduate students called the ‘First To Do It Roadmap’.

The subject matter is tailored and varied. One session teaches students how to manage their workload by signposting productivity tools and resources available at university. Another provides a timeline of when to start looking for student accommodation. A third session guides students on how to reach out to industry professionals for mentorship.

To create an evidence-based curriculum, FirstGens received funding from Innovate UK KTN and the Prince’s Trust to carry out research. The programme is delivered through group webinars, 1:1 coaching sessions and guides.

Thanks to Valli’s work in the startup, the number of participants has expanded and the programme is now taught to students coming from 27 different universities across the UK.

Valli is not alone at City; in September, The Times Good University Guide 2024 placed the University as the top 17^th institution for its proportion of first generation students, which make up 30 per cent of City’s British undergraduate student body.

Historically, City has been committed to social mobility, a focus which continues today. Earlier in October, City was ranked first in London and third in the UK for social mobility in the English Social Mobility Index (SMI).

As the University of business, practice and the professions, City’s focus looks further than access and inclusion and towards bettering the futures of its alumni.

To do so, City has committed to incorporating employability into each of its degrees to best prepare its graduates for the world of work, through its sector-leading Career Activation Plan.

This approach has borne fruits: the Longitudinal Education Outcomes report also found that City graduates outearn their peers based on median earnings data released by the UK government.

City’s focus on employability was one of Valli’s motivations when applying to the University, and she has made the most of the career opportunities available to her, selecting employment-focused classes like the Accenture and Google Cloud Computing module.

Valli became involved with FirstGens as an ambassador in the second year of her undergraduate, a role which involved spreading the word about the startup, and then in 2021- 2022, she undertook an industrial placement at the semiconductor company Arm.

At Arm, she supported the company’s people data analytics and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) strategy. During this year, she started to think about the ways in which she could apply the technical knowledge she was gaining through her studies.

Combining these two experiences, she progressed into an analytical and operational role at FirstGens, where she supports the data handling and the corporate strategy of the startup.

Now, using data analytics, she is able to create impact reports on how beneficial FirstGen’s programme has been to its student cohort.

After graduation, Valli wants social impact to be at the core of what she does, whether this means working on data-driven projects or consulting for social impact startups.

Describing the experience of studying and working on a topic she has personal experience of, Valli said:

To give back has been the main motivator for me whilst working with FirstGens.

Studying data science at City – a multidisciplinary STEM degree –has given me the ability to combine my technical knowledge and personal experience to create positive change in first generation student community.