Determinants of career choice among secondary school students in Enugu east education zone

This study examined determinants of career choice among secondary school students in Enugu East Education Zone. The study specifically examined the influence of parental factors on the choice of career among secondary school students in Enugu East, ascertained the influence of societal culture on the choice of career among secondary school students in Enugu East, evaluated the extent peer groups influence the choice of career among secondary school students in Enugu East and also investigated the influence of the school environment on the choice of career among secondary school students. Four research questions and four hypotheses guided the study. Related literature was reviewed under the conceptual framework, theoretical studies, theoretical framework, related empirical studies, and summary. The study adopted a census survey research design. The study was conducted among secondary schools in Enugu education zone. The population for the study was 334 students. There was no sampling of the study because of the manageable size of the population. A questionnaire was used as the instrument for data collection and was designed to elicit appropriate information from the respondents. To ascertain the face validity of the instrument, the questionnaire was given to two experts in the Department of Educational Management and one expert from Measurement and Evaluation in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Education all from the Faculty of Education, ESUT. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was calculated using the Cronbach Alpha method. The results of the analysis indicated reliability indices of 0.85, 0.81, 0.76, 0.83, and 0.84 for clusters A, B, C, D, and E. The overall reliability index was 0.82 which made the instrument reliable. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions, while t-test statistic was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed among others that there is no significant difference in the mean ratings regarding the influence of parental factors on the choice of career between male and female students. Based on the findings, the study recommends among others that parental impositions regarding their children's choice of career often result in career failure. In realization of this, parents should guide their children through the decision-making process. Parents are advised to allow their wards free hands in their career choices that will relate to their interests, aptitude, passion, and ability.