Educational Attainment of Immigrant Students in the United States: Generational Struggle Towards Success

Known as the land of opportunities, United States has always been a key attraction to outside world as the place where people can live up to their potential dreams. People migrate from far lands to settle down and find the missing link that was absent in their native country. Among numerous reasons, financial inefficiency and social and political insecurity at homeland, new immigration policies in the US, expectation of a better socio-economic lifestyle and a secure and prosperous future for their children are some key reasons why immigrants move out of their motherland and travel to America. They hope and pray for a prosperous educational career for their children who can grab onto the opportunities provided for students and accomplish the “American Dream”. However, their scholastic journey in the US is not as pleasant as they would have expected considering all the obstacles they must face during this journey. Various socioeconomic and political factors such as language inefficiency, difference in cultural and education system, financial instability and their illegal immigrant status are primary barriers that immigrant students face as they enter American schools and colleges. Nonetheless, positive factors such as higher parental education and cultural expectation on education, constructive modes of incorporation and academic preparation are key determinants as to figure out why some immigrant groups are succeeding more than others. For example, Asian immigrant students fare much better than their native counterparts and other immigrant students because of the strong cultural emphasis on education, parental education and social networks and how these factors motivate them to attain better grades and higher education. However, across multiple immigrant generations, educational achievements and socioeconomic mobility seems to follow a downward trajectory in the United States