Exploring the Career Interests of High School Students in the Tamale Metropolis, Ghana

Abstract

Career interest is vital for students since it becomes the basis for future career choices. Adolescents (such as Senior High School [SHS] students) have career interests that are fluid over time. This indicates the dynamic nature of the career interests of young people that can be influenced by many factors. Therefore, this present study explored the career interests of high school students in the Tamale Metropolis, Ghana. This study was conducted in the Tamale metropolis and it employed a qualitative study design. The total number of SHS students who participated in this study were 31 students. Two participating schools were purposively selected, with a convenience sampling method used in selecting the student respondents. A semi-structured interview guide was used to collect data in this study through interviewing. Thematic analysis of the data led to the development of the following themes (1. shared similarities of jobs in general and 2. shared similarity of aspects of jobs), (1. motivating influence, 2. agreeable influence, and 3. insistent influence), (1. self-fulfillment pathway and 2. self-efficacy pathway), (1. course(s) serving as a career pathway and 2. course(s) being a means of career insight), and (1. gender role favouring males, 2. job demand for females, 3. students’ persistence on their career interests and 4. family acceptance of career interest) to explain the influence between personal experience in jobs, parents or guardians, personal interest, courses (programme) pursued, gender roles, and students career interest respectively. It is worth noting that students' personal interest, personal experience in a job, parents or guardians, gender roles, and courses or programmes pursued greatly informed their career interests.