First-gen PhD candidate here. I read Grad School Essentials: A Crash Course to prepare. It was an easy read, and helped me feel less anxious about starting the process. I would also recommend doing a Google Scholar search for "graduate student socialization" and then any additional terms, such as "first generation".
One of the actions that helped me the most was finding current students who were willing to help me acclimate. I learned about journals, conferences, expectations, etc.
The hardest part for me, besides having only one friend who had gone through the PhD process, was that I came from a different disciplinary background. I felt overwhelmed at the amount I had to learn in order to catch up to my peers. If anyone, including you, is in this boat, I can offer advice.
Get a study group going, your ability to do this is gonna determine your success after college. If you can't get fellow students together, either because you're on the spectrum and/or other issues, then go to your professors and TAs, they are paid to listen to your crap.
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but its important you bounce off ideas; history theres a sub for that!
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https://www.amazon.com/Grad-School-Essentials-Course-Scholarly/dp/0520288300
https://www.amazon.com/Grad-School-Essentials-Course-Scholarly/dp/0520288300
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That's what got me thru. Quick read.
My advice:
I'd say gain skills in college , not just knowledge. This is easy if you're in the hard sciences, or art, where you're doing things w/ your hands (gaining skills); but if you're in the social sciences, learn skills. Languages for example compliment any social science-- Chinese, I would've looked into learning Chinese, i regret that since there were plenty of exchange students I could learnt from there.
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Think about facing towards Asia too, I think most opportunities will come from how you leverage stuff coming from, to going into Asia.
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I would've hung out more in Monterey. Look into doing things there.
Grad School Essentials: A Crash Course in Scholarly Skills targeted at humanities/social sciences but may be helpful
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