Parent versus peer influence on career choice among students in Secondary schools in Nyeri district, Nyeri county

Abstract

Secondary schools are important institutions where learners’ talents as well as intellectual abilities are nurtured. However, parents who have maternal and paternal relationship affect their children’s choice of career at this level. Peers also have an environmental effect on the school students’ decision. This has prompted the researcher to find out parental versus peer influence on career choice among students in secondary schools in Nyeri District, Nyeri County. It is apparent that the influences of parents and peers help the students to make decisions in choosing their careers. Parents are more influential in students’ career choice as compared to their peers. As students interact with their peers, their advice gives less impact and important as compared to parents. The researcher will use qualitative approach method during the study and for data collection; the researcher will use survey strategy. The researcher will have three sets of questionnaires during the research. One set of the questionnaires is for the teachers and the other one for students. The third set will be for the parents in the region. It is hoped that the findings from this research will help teachers, schools and other related bodies to develop a better plan that can guide and expose secondary school students to understand the need of choosing a career they have an upper hand in. As a consequence, it may help the Kenyan government to fulfill its desire to achieve the targeted of professionals by the year 2030. This data collected has shown that peers have a great influence on career choice. Parents from well up families tend to choose more lucrative careers for their children as compared with those from poor backgrounds. More educated parents also tend to choose careers for their children emphasizing on the future prospects of that particular career. Employed parents want their children to take up their careers especially if those careers are well paying.