Greek University Candidates’ Targets in a Changing, Unstable and Unpredictable Economic Environment

Abstract

The topic of the present study is concerned with the university candidates’ educational and career choices against an unstable economic background that may necessitate the reformulation and readjustment of choices to innovative concepts of advancement and future development as they may apply to youngsters of different social class and gender. The sudden call to precipitated maturity is a shock, as eighteen- year olds are now expected to sit for exams and simultaneously opt for an education- conduit to vocational security. More specifically, a case study concentrating on two different geographical areas: the Northern suburbs and western Attica was designed, taking into consideration the class-related socio-economic and political traits of their population. It is also estimated the extent to which educational choices are determined by gender. Close and open- end questions are utilized to unravel the societal considerations and selection tactics of the subjects, which is semantically revealed to lead to gingerly realistic steps on the quick sand of political and economic instability. There was also considerable profit from a multitude of interpretative versions and research bibliographies, so as to uncover the role that gender and class-related inequality plays in shaping and directing educational and vocational choices. The crux of our problematic is centered in a liquid status quo with individuals making judgments according to the social and educational capital established in the class and gender-related correlations within the collectivity. The research proceeds to expose vast vistas of continually re-definable prospects, renewable explorative models and a systemic complexity that regenerate youngsters' choices. It is noteworthy that information has for the first time become available on education being tied to vocation, not only against the backdrop of an economic and value crisis but also the end decade- long governmental providence.