Many things weigh in on a student’s mind when they think of what career field they wish to study. The pressure becomes more and more apparent as students get closer to their graduation date. Career ideas and the type of work a student wants to pursue can be influenced by a number of things, but the biggest factor that usually decides the ultimate choice is parental influence.

Parental influence can start out when they get their child involved in things like sporting events, gymnastics, and dance. The child who has always pursued such extra activities tends to want to go into a field of similar interests. The parents part in that type of career choice would be how they keep their child interested in the activities. Constantly supporting their child to do well in such events develops a general career interest foundation that kids tend to go off of.

The relationship between the parent and child plays a big role in what type of career that the child wishes to pursue. If there is a good relationship, it is more likely for the child to follow in the family business, or into the career field of the parent they have the best relationship with. While there is that type of relationship, there has to be an opposite. Many children try to get the approval of their parents. Those parents with high expectations generally have students constantly striving for their parents’ approval, and that action usually dictates the student’s life. With that amount of influence on the child, good or bad, they would not branch out and try new things that may make a difference when they choose what to pursue.

A loving and supportive environment will probably make the child more comfortable with searching for careers on their own. This is because the child feels as though they are trusted to make their own decisions. When you get to an environment where a child is not as supported for a certain career choice, it begins to show the influence that is being put onto the child by the parent.

Praise is another way of putting influence on a child. If a child is really good at writing and a parent praises it, the child will probably keep writing and try to make it better. The same thing happens when something is looked down upon. Pursuing arts has the possibility of not getting a job right away or even at all. Parents want the best for their children, so that is not a field that is generally ideal for the children. Because of this, parents tend to try to steer their children away from that career and try to make it more plausible for art to be a hobby.

Values and responsibilities that parents pass down also has an effect on their child. Some parents teach their children that they just need to follow what makes them happy, and that is all that matters. These children are more likely to choose what they really like to do. Some parents, for one reason or another, instill in their child’s mind that they need a high paying job to be happy. These children are more likely to choose a more secure job rather than one they may want to pursue but are afraid of upsetting their parents.

Some parents try to live out their dreams through their children. The influence that the children are under is huge when parents have regrets their children can fulfil. If a parent was great at the violin but never got the chance for their ‘big break’, they will probably be compelled enough to have their child pursue the violin in hope that their child will get the chance they never could. If a parent has lost dreams they were not able to fulfil, they will more than likely want their children to do the same activity.

Parents play a huge role in their child’s career choice. Their influence shapes the way the children think and their children