Career Patterns of Male College Graduates

Abstract

This was an investigation of the vocational behavior of male college graduates during their early work experiences. The career patterns of two alumni groups were identified and the influence of 41 factors on their vocational development were investigated and analyzed. The results of the pattern analysis reveal the following occupational trends: (a) 70 per cent of male college alumni remain in their initial occupational fields; (b) 25 per cent of the alumni have one or more exploratory jobs and then establish themselves in an occupational field in which they remain for three or more years; and (c) 5 per cent of the graduates never settle down into one occupational field. Correlations between the observed career patterns and the 41 variables are statistically significant in only a few cases. The study suggests that many of the factors will be important only at particular reference points in the careers of the college alumni.

Studies of occupational history: III. The stability of occupational groups of the Roe system.

“…Group VI is the second most attractive group (Hutchinson & Roe, 1968) and is the most stable group on all scales of stability-instability. This finding agrees in part with that of Doyle (1965) who found that the members of his sample who had stable career patterns tended also to be business majors (Group III) or natural science majors (Group VI).…”

Studies of occupational history: I. Job changes and the classification of occupations.

“…'This was the same percentage of no-step changes found byDoyle (1965) for subjects who were ten years out of school.…”

Stability and Change in 25‐Year Occupational Career Patterns

“…Career pattern has been useful in showing the occupational stability ofmen's careers. Doyle (1965) studied career patterns of388 male college graduates 5 and 10 years after graduation from one suburban liberal arts college. Seventy percent ofeach classwere in Stable patterns (same field since graduation), 25% had Conventional patterns (one or more trial jobs but remained in field for 3 or more years), and 5%were Unsettled (did not remain in same field for 3 or more years).…”