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I still regularly hear staff and faculty lament the challenges of working with Millennial students. They usually seem surprised (and possibly chagrined) when I respond, "You know that I'm technically a Millennial, right?" The fact is, the oldest Millennials are now wellestablished in their careers, requesting flex schedules so they can take their kids to soccer practice in the afternoons; they have little in common with the typical 18- to 22-year-old undergraduate in many college classrooms. So for those of us at campuses serving primarily traditional students, it seems like a good time to shift our thinking (and laments) toward the needs of a new generation of students, the oldest of whom are already in their early 20s and who increasingly are being referred to as the iGeneration (or iGen).
Though other names have been suggested for this cohort-Generation Z, post-Millennials, the Homeland Generation, Generation We-iGen seems particularly poignant in that it pays homage to the historical significance of this being the first generation of true digital natives, digital technology having been widely available since their birth. iGen might also subtly allude to the isolation many youths experience growing up in a world in which it is easier to connect with technology than with other people.
Major Factors Shaping iGen
iGen's attitudes and perspectives have been heavily shaped by the major events and prevailing Zeitgeist of their formative years. Of course, not everyone of a particular generation will have experienced the same influences or exhibit all or even any "typical" generational characteristics. In addition, the characteristics themselves will change as the generation ages. It is important to keep all of this in mind as you consider the context in which student services are provided; your own observations or campus experience may differ, and few solutions are truly one size fits all.
Technology
Technology's influence on iGen is undeniable. In Twenge's 2017 book on iGen teens, a thirteen-yearold interviewee relates her experience: "We didn't have a choice to know any life without iPads or iPhones. I think we like our phones more than we like actual people" (2). Even most Millennials cannot fully appreciate what it means to have grown up with digital technology so ubiquitous. My own sons, as toddlers, would swipe the TV when...