Factors influencing career choice among students in pedagogical specialties of secondary vocational education

The article presents an analysis of the factors influencing the choice of the teaching profession among students in secondary vocational education. This study explores what motivates the selection of a teaching specialty, as well as continued education within the educational system of the Khabarovsk Territory and retention in the profession. Previously, the factors affecting the choice of the teaching profession among secondary vocational education (SVE ) students had not been subjected to scientific analysis. The aim of the research was to examine the factors behind the choice of the teaching profession and the motivation for learning among SVE students. The study sample included 76 secondary vocational education students and 168 students pursuing higher pedagogical education. The following methods were used: an adapted Russian language version of the FIT Choice Scale ( « Factors Influencing Teaching Choice » ), a questionnaire based on the methodology for studying the attractiveness of a profession by V. Yadov, N. V. Kuzmina, and A. A. Rean, and the « Motivation for Learning in Higher Education » method by T. I. Ilyina. It was found that SVE and higher education (HE) students share similar intrinsic motives for choosing a teaching specialty, as well as factors that deter them from the teaching profession. At the same time, SVE students focus on the practical mastery of the profession and its applicability, while HE students are more oriented toward formal qualification certification. A comparison of SVE students who do and do not wish to work in the profession revealed that the motives of those aspiring to a teaching career differ significantly from those who do not plan to work in this field. Further research on this topic will help create favorable conditions for learning and retention in the teaching profession.