87% of young people in Kazakhstan would change their current specialty if they had such opportunity Medical industry is becoming an attractive professional sphere for the youth

DEMOSCOPE Bureau for Express Monitoring of Public Opinion has conducted a public opinion poll to find out what the people think about education and development of the youth in Kazakhstan.

1 671 respondents from Astana, Almaty and 14 regional centers of Kazakhstan took part in the poll.

67% of females and 33% males in the age of 14 to 30 were interviewed by phone and online.

The poll was conducted from 2 to 7 September 2015.

The statistical error does not exceed 2%.

As the poll results showed, only 13% of young people in the age of 18-30 are satisfied with the choice of their occupation. The rest 87% responded they would change the field of their activity. In the meantime, medical industry continues to gain its attractiveness among young people of Kazakhstan.

However, there are no many common patterns related to preferred occupation. But, it’s interesting to mention a decline in the interest towards traditional top occupations, such as finances and legal studies.

The following industries were mentioned among the most popular careers: medial industry (11%), engineering and technical professions (10%), economics (8%), legal studies (7%), oil and gas (6%), international relations and political sciences (5%), military science (4%), architecture (4%), construction (4%), design (2%), state and local governance (1%), and servicing (1%).

20% of the youngest interviewees aged 14 to 17 mentioned medical industry as the most preferred, while only another 10% want to be economists. 8% are thinking to become lawyers though. The most unpopular careers from the opinion of Kazakhstan teenagers relate to servicing with 1% of the respondents to choose the corresponding answer.

35% of the poll respondents in the age of 18 to 30 are working in line with the education they had received, while 27% of Kazakhstan teenagers are not. 30% of the poll participants are going to school, colleges and universities and therefore could not answer the question.

The high percentage of young people who desire to change their profession and work in the area of expertise as not specified in the diploma is associated with absence of proper professional orientation among teenagers when they were at school. Young people prefer to choose their occupation based on its prestige, more than the level of its demand in the market. Moreover, school graduates often have wrong vision about particular professional fields.

32% of young people in Kazakhstan begin their careers in the age of 18. 37% got job after they finished college or university. 5% don’t work after graduation, and 26% of the poll respondents continue their education and don’t work thereof.

As for the satisfaction with the level of income, 48% of the interviewees are satisfied with their current material status. Another 22% are not quite satisfied, while 15% mentioned they have only pocket money from their parents to spend.

The fact that teenagers are interested in social problems and opportunities to solve them demonstrates increasing level of civil engagement among young people of Kazakhstan. However, there is wide range of preferences in regard to the corresponding issues.

20% of the respondents would like to solve environmental problems in their city or region. 18% of the interviewees showed their interest in participation in different social, charity and human rights projects. 15% of young people wish to develop mass sports among children and youth. Another 13% preferred art and culture. 10% said they wanted to facilitate youth entrepreneurship. Finally, 6% are interested in the development of innovative technologies.

As the best way to defeat stress in everyday life, 14% of young people mentioned socializing with parents and relatives. 12% said about cultural leisure, especially visiting concerts, theaters and cinema halls. 9% of the respondents save themselves by means of hobby. 7% cope with stress situations through additional education and self-improvement. 6% find salvation in social networking and online communication, while only 3% go deep into work and 1% into volunteering.

Over one fourth of people in Kazakhstan don’t know that the country will join the WTO soon

Over 50% of the people in Kazakhstan still prefer to save money in national currency