Career-oriented support during training at the institutions of secondary vocational education

Abstract

Despite a growing demand for highly skilled manual workers, young people increasingly show reluctance to pursue vocational careers. Addressing this issue requires attracting ninth-grade school leavers to secondary vocational education institutions through effective career guidance and creation of supportive educational environment. The study hypothesized that providing educational support to vocational students would reduce the career regret, while simultaneously enhancing internal motivation and interest in their chosen field. The study involved 60 male participants, aged 15 to 17, who were surveyed using the following questionaries: the Map of Interests by A. E. Golomshtok, the Method of Motivational Induction (MMI) by J. Nutten, and the Motivation for Learning Assessment Tool by T. D. Dubovitskaya. Initially, two groups of 30 students each, enrolled in the training program ‘Construction and Operation of Building and Structures’ and ‘Electric and Gas Welding’, were compared. The group studying welding exhibited higher interest er levels of regret about their career choice. Based on these findings, additional career-oriented support was recommended for the construction students in the first year of study. At the final stage of the study, the same tools were used to reassess the first group of students. The results indicated significant improvements, including increased interest in their future careers (p<0.001), a reduction in career-related regret (p<0.01), and enhanced internal motivation (p<0.01). To conclude, career-oriented support for vocational students is effective in reducing career regret, boosting internal motivation for learning, and fostering a stronger desire to pursue a skilled trade and build a vocational career.