Post on 29-Dec-2015
Parents – key influencers on children’s academic and
employment choices
Chris Phillips, Research Director, GTI/TARGETcareers
June 23, 2015
Trendence and school leaver research
• Research into parental influence December 2014– Undergraduates– Parents– Careers advisers– HELOA members– Employers
• Trendence School Leaver Barometer 2014
Years 10-13 plans for study and work– 7,000 students– Produced annually
Download both reports from:gtimedia.co.uk/expertise/research-reports
New careers products for 2015areechool leaver print products
The UK’s 100 most popular employers for School Leavers
Features over 100 UK employers as voted for by 7,000 school students and top 20 universities
The UK’s first and largest employer ranking product aimed at school and FE college students
50,000 copies circulated free to students and careers contacts at over 4,000 schools and FE Colleges plus digital editions
TARGETcareers Construction, Engineering & Property
Mainly for employers in these sectors to promote alternatives to university
Print copies distributed to key contacts at every school and FE college in the UK, along with the digital version
TARGETcareers
• Careers information to help school and college students choose the degree courses and universities to reach their careers goals
• Building on TARGETjobs’ 25-year history of editorial excellence for university students
TARGETcareersLaunched in September 2015
‘When I was eighteen, I thought my father was a fool. When I was 21, I was pleasantly surprised at how much he had managed to learn in three years.’
Mark Twain
THE HEADLINES
PARENTS ARE INFLUENTIAL
THANK GOD
• Only 7% of students believe that parents have had no influence on their key education and career choices
• 57% believe that parents have influenced them a fair amount or a huge amount
“AND THEY ARE RIGHT TO BE...”
SAY THEIR KIDS
• 66% think it’s the right thing for parents to do
• Only 7% think it’s wrong
• Students believe that parents seek to influence their children because they want them to have a better life than they had
• 69% of students say that their parents tried to influence their choice of university/degree
• 54% their choice of career
UNIVERSITY – THE DEFAULT OPTION
• 76% of students say that their parents encouraged them to go to university
• 70% of parents say they would or did encourage their children to go to university
ALTERNATIVES TO UNIVERSITY
PARENTS IN THE DARK
• 73% of students say that their parents never discussed alternatives to university with them
• 25% of parents say that they didn’t discuss alternatives because they believed that university was a much better choice
PARENTS ON HAND TO HELP
• 56% of students say that their parents accompanied them to university open days
• 47% have had some help with job applications and interviews
• 39% of students say that their parents have offered to put them in touch with family, friends or work colleagues
INFLUENCE IS NOT A CONSTANT
It changes depending on: • Whether parents have been to
university• Where they live• What they do for a living• Whether their children have studied at
state school or an independent school• Whether the children are boys or girls
IT’S WHO YOU KNOW...
• The level of parental influence is much higher for students who were independently educated
• Parents of independently educated students are much more likely to put their children in touch with family, friends and work colleagues
• But parents of independently educated students are less likely to attend university open days
VIVE LA DIFFERENCE
• At university open days, women were much more likely to take their parents
• Men are more likely to receive parental help to contact friends, family and work colleagues
PARENTS WHO HAVE A DEGREE
• The level of influence exerted by parents who had been to university is much higher than that of parents who hadn’t
• Parents who hadn’t been to university were much less likely to help their children with job applications and interviews compared to those parents who had
IT DEPENDS WHERE YOU LIVE
• Most likely to encourage their children to go to university– Northern Ireland (91%)– East of England (62%)
• Most likely to discuss alternatives to university with their children– South West (70%)– London (47%)
ON THE FRONT LINEOUTREACH, ADMISSIONS,
MARKETING
• 57% say there has been an increase in the number of parents at open days compared to five years ago
• 83% say it was important for their university to encourage parents to attend open days
• 57% say they have had experience of parents seeking to influence the university application process in favour of their child
WHAT ARE CAREERS SERVICES SAYING ON THE
SUBJECT?
• 62% believe that parents are more visible or involved in their children’s career choices post-university compared to five years ago
• 32% say that their own service is already making guidance or information available to undergraduates’ parents
• 28% plan to make it available
• 88% say the Careers and Employability Service is involved in university open days speaking or presenting to prospective students’ parents
WE ALL KNOW WHO KNOWS BEST
Students think their mothers are significantly more active than fathers in attempts to
influence decisions
Dr Paul Redmond, Director of Student Life
Cabinet Ministers, Spin Doctors, Yes Ministers and Backbenchers: charting the influence of parents on students’ careers.
If you can read this thank a
teacher. National Union of Teachers
Parent Typology
• Cabinet Minister• Civil Servant• Spin Doctor• Backbencher
The Cabinet Minister
• Highly influential and well-connected;• Holder and purveyor of cultural capital;• Direct access to elite networks;• Able to achieve results;• Metropolitan and cosmopolitan.
“”The biggest influence my parents gave me was their own example – they both went to Cambridge and while they in no way TOLD me to apply there,
they did tell me about their own experiences, which made me want to go there myself.”.”
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
Civil Servant
• Informed adviser;• Guides from the side-lines;• Familiar with processes and conventions;• High levels of knowledge, but may pull back
from exerting direct engagement and influence;
• Aims for neutrality.
’56% of students said their parents had accompanied them to university open days.’
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
“As I do not receive student finance, my whole education was an investment from my
parents, so the minimum I can do is show some gratitude is to listen and take into
account what they have to say.”
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
The Spin Doctor
• Ferociously loyal;• Uber-competitive and willing to go to extreme
lengths to gain a positional advantage;• Expert at communications and image
management;• Excels in the curricula and extracurricular;• Overstepping the mark is but an occupational
hazard.
’25% of employers say that they had experience of parents seeking to influence the
selection process for their child.’
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
“I received huge pressure from the private school I attended with regard to
going to university, despite feeling it wasn’t the right choice for me.”
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
The Backbencher
• Loyal and hard-working but likely to wield limited influence;
• Has limited capacity to shape proceedings;• Likely to lack key knowledge;• May act on outdated intelligence; • Can find it difficult to identify with new
economic realities.
‘Students with parents who had not been to university were much more likely to be left to
make their own decisions.’
‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment choices’ 2014
“From my own experience, parents with little or no higher education don’t know
much about the university process, therefore they didn’t have much input
into my decisions.”‘Parental influence on children’s academic and employment
choices’ 2014
(Low) Knowledge (High)
Spin Doctor Cabinet Minister
Back Bencher Civil Servant
(Low
)E
ng
agem
ent
(
Hig
h)Influence
How careers services collaborate with student recruitment and marketing teams in order to
engage prospective students and parents.
Destinations data:
•Quantitative - Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE)•Qualitative – Elaboration on the DLHE data, case studies, etc.
Careers information inprospectuses, websites, newsletters to prospective students and offer holders, etc.
OFFA-funded posts:• Careers Consultants• Data Analysts• Work Experience Specialists
All working to ‘level the playing field’ for widening participation students.
OFFA-funded posts
Pre-entry Careers Consultants – outreach in schools– produce Information Sheets and other resources– deliver workshops and talks– Attend recruitment events (including webchats)
An especially valuable service given the decline in careers education, information, advice and guidance in schools
Open Days
Attend open days to help potential students and parents understand the occupational implications of degree choice (and other things)
Key messages/themes
• Advice on strengthening personal statements when applying to university
• Latest information on the graduate recruitment market (don’t always believe media headlines!)
• What do employers look for?• How universities develop students’
employability skills and experience
Download both reports from:gtimedia.co.uk/expertise/research-reports