“I am a first-generation and I can make a difference”. When I heard this from a group of students during the 2021 First2 Network Convening, it brought me back to my first years in College. At that time, as a first-generation student, I couldn’t have been more scared. The feeling of not belonging to that place, which no one had prepared me for, was overwhelming. It was when I met other students who, like me, were also the first in their families to go to College, that the feeling began to wear off. Being part of that small community encouraged me to seek opportunities, which ended up shaping my whole career. During my college years, I got a scholarship to participate in undergraduate research and since then, a new world of opportunities has opened to me. After getting my degree in Dentistry, Masters and PhD. in Biological Sciences I started my career as a University Professor in my home country, Brazil. Today, as an Assistant Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research at WVU and part of the First2 Network I seek to create opportunities to engage students in research, particularly for those who are underrepresented and first-generation. Participating in research experiences will have a huge impact in their lives, just as it did for me. Paraphrasing the students from First2 Network, I can say today that I am a first-generation and I am making a difference!