In this paper, we seek to answer the research question as to whether students take into account the predictions of human capital theory (namely the higher wages associated with further studies) in their decision to participate in higher education. Our alternative research question is whether students can be described by Bourdieu's theory on capital conversion, that is, whether they aim to accumulate cultural and social capital during their studies, which can also be profitable for them in the future. Our research method is quantitative: we use cluster analysis to examine the motives behind further studies and employ cross tabulation and variance analysis to reveal the relationship between clusters and social background variables. We find that the wage premium associated with further studies is not the most important motive among students; it holds only minor importance even for those from a disadvantaged social background. The results suggest that students in secondary schools, especially talented but underprivileged ones, should be motivated to enter higher education by informing them about the potential wage premium they can attain if they study further. Importantly, we also find that underprivileged students may be unaware of the fact that higher education is an efficient mechanism to accumulate social and cultural capital, which then can be converted into economic capital.
In this study, we examine the motives behind higher education students’ volunteering and its determinants based on a survey (N=2,199) conducted in five Central and Eastern European countries. Based on the literature, we hypothesize that, besides traditional volunteering, which has the objective of helping others, it is also common to pursue career-focused volunteering, which is aimed at networking and the acquisition of work experience and professional knowledge. Cluster analysis results reveal the presence of traditional as well as career-focused volunteers, who also find it important to help others. Logistic regression results suggest that career-building motivations are more frequent among students who are in an unfavorable financial situation, display intensive individual religiosity and have close social relationships. Further regression results show that the country, the field of study and the relationship with faculty all influence whether volunteer work is related to the field of study.
A karriermenedzsment fontos szegmense, hogy az egyének (jelen esetben az egyetemi hallgatók) mennyire karriertudatosak. Tanulmányunkban az emberi tőke elméletre építve vizsgáljuk a felsőoktatási hallgatók továbbtanulási motivációit és a tanulmányok befejezése melletti elkötelezettségüket. Az elméleti részben a karrier, a karriertudatosság és a perzisztencia fogalmát határoljuk körül a szakirodalmak alapján, valamint röviden kitérünk az emberi tőke modell lényegére is. Hipotézisünk szerint a karriertudatos hallgatók az emberi tőke modell jóslatát (a diplomával szerezhető jól jövedelmező állás, könnyebb elhelyezkedés és elismert foglalkozás szerzése) veszik elsősorban figyelembe a továbbtanulás során, illetve emellett elkötelezettebbek tanulmányaik befejezése mellett, és úgy gondolják, hogy tanulmányaik hasznosak lesznek számukra a karrierjük során. Az empirikus részben a karriertudatosságot főkomponens elemzéssel vizsgáljuk számos változó bevonásával, és a képzett mutató(k) értékeit összevetjük a hallgató neme, társadalmi háttere, a képzés területe, szintje és finanszírozási formája szerint. Az adatok egy nagymintás hallgatói adatbázisból származnak, a kutatás Magyarország keleti régiójának felsőoktatási intézményeiben folyt.
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