Career Patterns of Male College Graduates

Abstract

This was an investigation of the vocational behavior of male college graduates during their early work experiences. The career patterns of two alumni groups were identified and the influence of 41 factors on their vocational development were investigated and analyzed. The results of the pattern analysis reveal the following occupational trends: (a) 70 per cent of male college alumni remain in their initial occupational fields; (b) 25 per cent of the alumni have one or more exploratory jobs and then establish themselves in an occupational field in which they remain for three or more years; and (c) 5 per cent of the graduates never settle down into one occupational field. Correlations between the observed career patterns and the 41 variables are statistically significant in only a few cases. The study suggests that many of the factors will be important only at particular reference points in the careers of the college alumni.