ERIC Number: EJ835857
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2009
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1038-4162
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
The Intersection of Vocational Interests with Employment and Course Enrolments
Athanasou, James A.
Australian Journal of Career Development, v18 n1 p8-16 Aut 2009
This paper examines the relationships between interests and subject choice in senior secondary schooling, and between interests and occupational choices. Career interest results (N = 7477) were obtained from the "Career Interest Test" ("Version 3.1") administered on the Federal Government's "My Future" website (http://www.myfuture.edu.au) and were then compared with the nature of high school course enrolments and structure of employment. Work-related interests were fairly evenly spread across Outdoor, Practical, Scientific, Creative, Business, Office and People Contact activities. In contrast, employment in Australia was skewed towards Business and Practical activities (48.6%). On the other hand, Mathematics courses (20.1%) and Science (17.1%) dominated senior secondary school enrolments. It is possible that the interests and preferences of Australians are not satisfied either by the curriculum offered to them or by the work opportunities available. (Contains 4 tables and 5 figures.)
Descriptors: Vocational Interests, Interest Inventories, Foreign Countries, Mathematics, Comparative Analysis, Enrollment Trends, Employment Patterns, Career Choice, Mathematics Education, Science Education, Course Selection (Students), Measures (Individuals), Secondary School Students, Education Work Relationship
Australian Council for Educational Research. 19 Prospect Hill Road, Camberwell, VIC 3124, Australia. Tel: +61-3-9277-5447; e-mail: sales@acer.edu.au; Web site: http://www.acerpress.com.au
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A