A cross-cultural analysis on career decision-making of college students: the role of Chinese mainstream ideology ( Análisis intercultural sobre las decisiones de los universitarios respecto a sus salidas profesionales: el rol de la ideología dominante )

Abstract

This paper investigates the factors influencing the career decisions of Chinese college graduates. The study applied the experimental method, with a survey conducted among two groups of college graduates (Chinese and international students). The experiment involved 686 students (343 Chinese students and 343 international students) in their final year. The main criteria for career choices among Chinese students include motivation (76%), interest (62%), personal development (53%), aptitudes (48%), awareness of the profession (38%) and attitudes of their parents/instructors (72%). By contrast, international students chose personal development (81%), aptitudes (74%) and motivation (68%) among the criteria. A career guidance training programme has been developed in order to improve motivation and willingness of college graduates to make decisions about their careers. The practical value and research outlooks are based on the opportunities arising when determining the influence of cross-cultural characteristics on the choice of a profession in the course of exploring the motivation and willingness to make career decisions not just for college graduates but also for universities in China and other countries in a comparative context. RESUMENEste artículo investiga los factores que influyen en las decisiones de los graduados de las universidades chinas sobre sus salidas profesionales. En el estudio se adoptó un método experimental basado en un cuestionario distribuido entre dos grupos de pregraduados universitarios (estudiantes chinos e internacionales). En el experimento participaron 686 estudiantes (343 de nacionalidad china y 343 de otras nacionalidades) que cursaban el último año de estudios. Los principales criterios para la elección de su futura profesión entre los estudiantes chinos incluían: motivación (76%), predisposición (62%), desarrollo personal (53%), aptitudes (48%), conocimiento de la profesión (38%) y actitudes de los ARTICLE HISTORY