What children watch on TV and are exposed to on social media are becoming increasingly influential on what they wish to do as a job when they grow up.
That’s one of the key findings of a new report from the Education Authority and charity Education and Employers looking at career aspirations held by primary school children in Northern Ireland.
The ‘Drawing the Future’ study reported an alarming gap in what children want to be and what jobs will be available to them in the future and revealed the lack of awareness many young people have about the opportunities open to them.
For boys, becoming footballers, rugby players, farmers, engineers, YouTubers and builders were among the top aspirations while girls harbour ambitions to become teachers, vets, hairdressers and nurses.
It also reported a significant misalignment between the jobs children aspire to and economic forecasts as very few children hoped for jobs in key growth areas such as technology, robotics, Al and computing.
Some 35% of children said they’d like careers in culture, media or sport – though projections suggest only 1% of future job opportunities will be in those areas.
Socio-economic disadvantage makes a big difference to children’s aspirations as girls attending schools with a high free school meal ratio (21%) have much more interest in creative/performing arts than those in more affluent areas (12%).
Local environment also makes a difference for some interests, with boys in rural areas (13%) much more likely to want to be farmers. Indeed none of those living in urban areas listed farming as a career they would like to follow.
Expectations for going to university are higher for girls (50%) than boys (36%) while the expectation of doing an apprenticeship are lower than university for both boys and girls (25% for both groups)
The report said that schools can play a greater role in compensating for the lack of understanding children often have of the opportunities open to them.
Fewer than 1% of children mentioned hearing about a job through visitors to the school introducing their work.
The report found that children’s aspirations cover only 31% of current employment in Northern Ireland.
Education Minister Paul Givan said: “High quality careers education and guidance is crucial in ensuring learners are aware of their future options and available pathways. It is not simply advising on job options, it is also about opening doors, expanding horizons and empowering young people to make informed decisions about their future.
“I want to ensure that all young people, regardless of gender, location or background, have access to the support and information that they need to make confident, well-informed choices.
“Exposing children to more real-world examples in a way that is both exciting and embedded in everyday school life, as well as being age appropriate, can help transform the way they view certain professions and roles.”