Career dreams clash with reality
Kids are setting their hearts on a narrow range of careers and many fear they will never reach their goals, says Lisa Denny
LIFE, and work, are challenging for young Australians. While the economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, the GFC and policy direction for economic recovery exacerbate these challenges, they are not the cause.
No, the cause of young Australians’ life challenges is rooted in primary school. There has been a failure of our economy and society to inform, educate, inspire and ignite passion in our younger generations to aspire to a job and career of the future.
The OECD report, Dream Jobs? Teenagers’ Career Aspirations and the Future of Work, found two in five Australian students expected to work in one of 10 occupations by age 30 (52 per cent of girls/42 per cent of boys). Jobs with origins in the 20th century or earlier were most attractive, rather than jobs of the future.
It concluded, “Increasingly the expectations of young people may be out of date and unrealistic. Over the period of the greatest accumulation of human capital during a lifetime, the data indicate that many young people are intent on pursuing jobs that they have little chance of securing”.
Many studies using Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth and the Longitudinal Study of Australian children data draw the same conclusions, that young people do not have a full appreciation of the jobs available, resulting in their aspirations in a narrow set of occupations, not all of which are realistic, and that have been narrowing further.
Among OECD nations, the top 10 expected occupations of 15-year-olds at age 30 were, for girls — doctor, teacher, business manager, lawyer, nurse or midwife, psychologist, designer, veterinarian, police officer or architect. Boys listed engineer, business manager, doctor, ICT professional, sportsperson, teacher, police officer, motor vehicle mechanic, lawyer or architect.
These occupations make up less than a third of all jobs in the Australian labour market.
In an Australian study, the top three expected occupations for young women were registered nurse, solicitor and primary school teacher, For young men they were engineering professional, policeman and electrician.
UK and New Zealand studies found aspirations are shaped much earlier, between 7 and 11.
The studies conclude there is nothing in common between aspirations and labour market.
The findings are even more concerning when considered with studies on anxieties (before COVID-19). A 2019 Mission Australia Youth Survey found mental health the biggest issue for the third year running. Anxiety about ability to find meaningful work, financial insecurity, discrimination, lack of housing, cost of living, environment and climate change and sustainability of their lifestyle, are having a deep impact on wellbeing.
These are also linked to competition for jobs, inadequate education and lack of skills and experience. Young Australians want to be given a fair chance when seeking work. At the same time, they fear working in a job they are not interested in. They feel they have one chance at a career they want, that opportunities are limited and are struggling to navigate a career path in a fast changing world of work.
Before COVID-19, more than half the workforce was in health, social and personal services, administration, sales and hospitality. The Employment, Education and Skills Department projected demand would grow in these to 2024. However, COVID-19 will reshape the labour market and industry structure for years, making projections almost obsolete. Jobs of the future will be dependent on decisions today in relation to economic, industry, social, industrial relations and education policies.
An OECD study of 19 of the G20 nations found only 39 per cent of young people were confident they would be able to find a job they really wanted to do. Australia ranked 14th.
Reports from Foundations for Young Australians, the 2019 Mission Australia Youth Survey and Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth data found young people lacked confidence about their working future. Less than half were confident in their ability to achieve work and study goals, despite almost all intending to complete year 12. Almost half reported barriers to their aspirations, young women more so, and the top three barriers considered to be affecting their goals after school were academic ability, mental health and financial difficulty. Perceived barriers were lack of experience, lack of jobs and lack of the right education or training. They also believed their age was a barrier to employment. Potential to achieve their dreams may be further compromised by confusion about how education and qualifications are related to jobs. An indicator of their capacity to progress is the extent to which their education and job aspirations are aligned. In an OECD survey, fewer than one in 10 believed school had prepared them for working. Nearly half feared their skills would not be in demand in future. Australia’s result was seventh lowest of 19 countries.
Implications of these misalignments are far-reaching. The Business Council of Australia’s The Modern Worker sets out requirements from an employer’s perspective, but fails to align these with desires and values of young Australians. In fact, predictions of the future of work is not necessarily what future workers want. This will have implications in attracting workers. This misalignment is causing deep anxiety.
Adding to this challenge, more than one in five Tasmanians start grade 7 below or at the minimum national standard for reading. We need to reverse the trend of setting our young children up to fail from primary school.
THE TOP THREE OCCUPATIONS FOR YOUNG WOMEN WERE REGISTERED NURSE, SOLICITOR AND PRIMARY TEACHER, WHILE FOR YOUNG MEN THEY WERE ENGINEERING PROFESSIONAL, POLICEMAN AND ELECTRICIAN ... STUDIES FOUND ASPIRATIONS ARE SHAPED AGES 7 TO 11