Adaptation to the market? Status differences between target occupations in the application process and realized training occupation of German adolescents

Abstract

Adolescents' occupational expectations are relevant for occupational status attainment. In strong vocational education and training (VET) systems, such as in Germany, school leavers face the challenge of forming occupational expectations that correspond to the competitive VET market. This study investigates students' target occupations in the application process and its relation to their first training occupation. Do applicants for VET positions apply for occupations of different socioeconomic status over time? Does the status of the target occupations increasingly fit to the finally achieved training occupation? Are there differences by familial socioeconomic background? Analysis are based on longitudinal data on the application process collected from German students in lower secondary and intermediate secondary schools in one urban area. Overall, the status level of the target occupations at the beginning of the application process differs significantly according to school track, but additionally to school grades or family background. At the end of the application process, the application behaviour becomes diversified: applicants with poor school grades and of low status continue to apply for target occupations at a similar status level but at the same time apply for occupations of relative lower status. This lower level does not, however, translate into training occupations.

Educational and Occupational Aspirations: A Longitudinal Study of Vienna Youth

“…At the same time, this also means that young people at the lower school track are locked in, which may limit their social mobility in the future. Previous research on the development of occupational aspirations in Switzerland and Germany came to similar conclusions (Basler & Kriesi, 2019;Schels & Abraham, 2021).…”

“…Research findings suggest that there are group-specific formation processes. Studies from Germany for school leavers from the lower track who apply for VET indicate stability between aspirations from school days and the target occupations of the applications, with changes being rather observable in the group of young people with poorer school performance and low social background (Heckhausen & Tomasik, 2002;Schels & Abraham, 2021). Findings for the lower secondary school track in Germany show that youth increasingly develop aspirations in line with their school performance to avoid the risks of over-and under-aspiration (Heckhausen & Tomasik, 2002).…”

Why Do High‐Performing School Leavers Aspire to Occupations Atypical of Their Qualification?

“…This results in better chances for applicants with higher school-leaving qualifications to obtain a training place (e.g., Holtmann et al, 2017;Protsch, 2014). There are more than 320 training occupations, and school-leaving certificates exert an influence both in terms of which of these occupations adolescents are able to access and in respect of the occupations to which they aspire (e.g., Hirschi & Vondracek, 2009;Schels & Abraham, 2021). Accordingly, there is a stable vertical occupational segmentation between high-performing and low-performing school leavers within dual VET (Protsch, 2014;Protsch & Solga, 2016).…”

“…Thus, instead of merely asking why adolescents with an HEEC prefer dual VET to university education (e.g., Becker & Hecken, 2009;Schnitzler, 2019) the research question should be extended by asking why some aspire to non-HEEC occupations and thereby forgo the advantages of HEEC occupations. While an extensive body of empirical research on occupational choice considers the adolescents' school education (e.g., Basler & Kriesi, 2019;Malin & Jacob, 2019;Schels & Abraham, 2021), to our knowledge, no study has analysed the occupational aspirations of adolescents with an HEEC whilst taking the hierarchical occupational segmentation of dual VET into account. However, the number of adolescents with an HEEC in dual VET is increasing not only in general but also in non-HEEC occupations (BIBB, 2021, pp.…”

Scarring Dreams? Young People’s Vocational Aspirations and Expectations During and After Unemployment

“…Several researchers have studied changes in career goals during the school-to-work transition (Jacobs et al, 1991;M. K. Johnson, 2002;Rindfuss et al, 1999;Schels & Abraham, 2021;Shu & Marini, 2008). They show that occupational status aspirations tend to decline when young people enter the labor market, indicating an adaptation of initially ambitious plans to the opportunities available to the individual (Shu & Marini, 2008).…”