Teens Aspire to High-Skilled Jobs, but Forgo University: OECD

A growing number of teenagers across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expect to enter high-skilled professions without planning to pursue higher education, according to a new OECD report. The disconnect between students’ aspirations and actual labor market demands highlights long-standing gaps in career preparation, especially among disadvantaged youth.

The OECD’s State of Global Teenage Career Preparation report, based on data from 690,000 15-year-olds across 81 countries in the 2022 PISA assessment, finds that one in five students, and one in three socially disadvantaged students, aim for jobs typically requiring a bachelor’s degree, yet do not expect to attend university. In Mexico, out of every 100 students who start primary school in Mexico, 92 reach secondary school, 84 make it to upper secondary, 39 enroll in higher education, and only 28 graduate from university.

The study points to a broader misalignment between teenagers’ career expectations and the realities of the labor market. Socioeconomic status plays a larger role than academic performance in shaping educational ambitions. On average, low-performing students from privileged backgrounds are more likely to anticipate completing university than high-performing students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The report also shows persistent gender disparities in aspirations toward sectors with growing demand, such as information technology and healthcare. In 2022, only 1.5% of girls across the OECD expected to work in IT by age 30, compared with 11% of boys.

Teenage preferences continue to center on a limited number of professional roles. Half of girls and 44% of boys said they expected to enter one of just 10 occupations, reflecting a trend that has remained largely unchanged since 2000. The concentration of job preferences among a narrow set of roles contrasts with the dynamic evolution of labor market needs.

For example, career choices in Mexico have stayed the same for a decade, with most students still pursuing traditional fields like business, engineering, law, and nursing, despite shifting labor market demands, reports IMCO.

At the same time, the report raises concerns about students’ preparedness for life after school. Nearly 40% of students said they were uncertain about their future careers by age 15 — twice the rate from a decade ago. One in three students reported that school had not taught them things relevant to the workplace.

“These mismatches in students’ aspirations and plans, coupled with skills shortages in our economies, call for new policies to support better career preparation,” says Mathias Cormann, Secretary General, OECD. “More efforts are needed to help young people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, get the career guidance they need to understand the options open to them.”

The findings suggest that students often lack exposure to the range of opportunities available. Fewer than half of 15-year-olds across OECD countries reported any form of engagement with employers, such as attending job fairs, visiting workplaces, or participating in work placements. The participation rate is even lower among students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

To close the gap between aspirations and opportunity, the report calls for increased collaboration between education systems and employers. Simple measures such as encouraging employees to volunteer time to speak with students about their careers could help broaden understanding and align ambitions with attainable pathways.

This alignment between academic and corporate needs is evident in the growing adoption of dual education models, originally developed in Germany, reports MBN. Siemens, for example, has embraced this model for over seven years. “The magic lies in hands-on experience,” says Juan Carlos Díaz, People and Organization Head, Siemens Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. This model allows “participants to work side-by-side with top-level professionals and learn directly from cutting-edge technologies,” he adds.