<p>First-generation college students encounter unique and multifaceted challenges in higher education, yet the nuances of their adaptation experiences within China’s top-tier universities remain insufficiently understood. Drawing on in-depth semi-structured interviews with eighteen first-generation students across these prestigious institutions, this study examines how they navigate university life and respond to evolving pressures. Through iterative thematic analysis, it develops the Dynamic Anchoring–Resilience Model, which conceptualizes adaptation as an ongoing process of establishing, maintaining, and recalibrating “anchors” across key domains. The findings reveal that students cycle through phases of exploration, disruption, and re-anchoring as they negotiate academic demands, cultivate social networks, and adjust psychological expectations. Resilience emerges not as a fixed personal trait but as a socially embedded capacity enabled by institutional resources, peer relations, and reflexive re-evaluation. By foregrounding the temporal, relational, and context-sensitive nature of adaptation, this study advances theoretical understandings of first-generation college students’ agency and offers practical implications for designing flexible, responsive support systems that promote equity and inclusion in highly stratified higher education environments.</p>