THE ROLE OF STUDENT AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS IN CLOSING EQUITY GAPS FOR FIRST-GENERATION STUDENTS AT RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES

First-generation college students, defined as those whose parents did not complete a bachelor's degree, represent one of the largest and most persistently underserved populations in American higher education. At research universities in particular, where institutional culture, academic expectations, and social dynamics have historically been calibrated for students from college-educated families, first-generation students face compounding equity gaps that extend well beyond academic preparation. This review article examines the role of student affairs professionals as institutional agents in closing those gaps, arguing that the student affairs function is not supplemental to the academic mission but integral to it when equity is understood as a core educational outcome. Drawing on recent empirical literature, practitioner surveys, and institutional case studies from 2021 to 2025, the article analyses five domains of student affairs practice through which equity work is carried out: proactive academic advising and early alert systems, summer bridge and transition programming, peer and faculty mentorship frameworks, financial aid literacy and basic needs support, and mental health and wellbeing infrastructure. The article further examines structural tensions that constrain student affairs professionals in equity-focused work, including resource scarcity, institutional siloing, the burden of data-driven accountability, and the increasingly turbulent policy environment in which first-generation programming operates. Recommendations are offered for institutional leaders, policy makers, and student affairs practitioners seeking to move from ad hoc support to systemic equity-oriented practice.