Dream Jobs vs realities of the American workforce
Every kid has wild dreams about the jobs they want to do when they grow up. Most of us choose to dream big and aspire for careers in music, sports, medicine, space travel, and video game designers to name a few.
However there is a big story that has been overlooked in regards to the future of the American workforce. When talking about the future of American jobs the sad reality is that most American teenagers aren’t interested in the most in-demand jobs. It turns out there are very few American teenagers that want to work in an office when they grow up. Could this be a potentially huge problem for the future of the American workforce?
To try and provide insight into that question, C+R research a marketing research agency in Chicago surveyed 476 American teenagers on the kind of jobs they’d like to do and then compared those results with the current workforce realities in the United States. They found some truly fascinating data as a result of their survey.
Some of the more interesting data is highlighted below:
- 20% of teens want one of 15 jobs that make up just 1% of the American workforce.
- Of the 25 most common jobs in America, only 7% of teens aspire to hold one of them. The most popular responses were registered nurses, elementary school teachers, construction workers, and accountants.
- Of the 25 jobs expected to grow most by 2024, just 3% of teens aspire to hold one of them. The most popular responses were nurse practitioners, physical therapists, statisticians and web developers.
- 17% said they honestly had no idea what job they want.
- Only 1% said they want to be entrepreneurs.
While we all want to get paid to do what we love, the unfortunately news is that most adults have to decide to earn a living doing a job that is more available and realistic as opposed to their dream job. There are many occupations that might not seem desirable, but our economy would collapse without these types of occupations being filled.
Teen Dream Jobs vs American Workforce Realities
