Does career guidance narrow the aspiration gap? Socioeconomic status and occupational aspirations of school children

Research has shown that the occupational aspirations of school children are not independent of family socioeconomic status. Different socioeconomic backgrounds may result in aspiration gaps, analogous to the achievement gaps between different groups of students. In this study, we examine whether school-based career guidance may reduce the relationship between the socioeconomic backgrounds and occupational aspirations of school children. In particular, we shed light on two popular approaches for implementing career guidance in schools―the addition and infusion approaches―to see if they moderate the association between the socioeconomic status of parents and the occupational aspirations of their children. Using the Programme for International Student Assessment 2018 data, we analyze the patterns of 201,843 15-year-old students at 10,135 schools in 36 countries. Our results indicate that family socioeconomic status is positively associated with students’ occupational aspirations. However, the magnitude of this association significantly diminishes in education systems where career guidance has been institutionalized as a system-wide practice that is deeply infused into, rather than simply added to, student learning experiences.