Analysis: 98% of children under 9 could articulate a specific future job, long, before subject choices, career guidance or college courses come into play
"I want to be an actor because I'm very dramatic." (Girl, 8)
"A footballer is the best job because you get paid millions." (Boy, 8)
"Money is very important so you can buy a house and survive your life." (Boy, 6)
These are not throwaway comments, but early expressions of how children already understand work, success, identity and possibility. Children are actively constructing ideas about who they are, what they are good at and what futures feel possible to them long before subject choices or career guidance formally begin. But is our education system prepared to recognise and respond to this early learning?
Recent research with 100 children, aged five to nine years, across three Irish primary schools suggests that early career-related learning is already happening albeit informally and often unintentionally. Career learning is often understood as something that belongs to adolescence in the form of CVs, subject choices and post-school decisions.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime, are parents keeping kids away from apprenticeships?
However, this view overlooks a key reality that career development is lifelong and children begin forming ideas about work and identity much earlier than we tend to acknowledge. In this study 98% of participating children could already articulate a specific future job. These aspirations were not random: children drew on everyday experiences, conversations at home, classroom activities, play, and increasingly the media that surrounds them.
What mattered most was not just what children wanted to be, but why. Their ideas were closely linked to what they enjoyed, what they believed they were good at and what they saw modelled around them. These early understandings shape children's sense of confidence, belonging and perceived limits. International longitudinal research tells us that certain possibilities are unlikely to be revisited in adolescence once ruled out. Early career-related learning, then, is not about asking young children to choose a career. It is about recognising that this learning is already underway and deciding whether we want it to remain narrow, accidental and unequal, or supported in ways that broaden horizons.
One of the most striking findings was how confident and articulate children were when talking about work. Through drawings and classroom discussions, they connected careers to enjoyment, money, helping others, creativity and social relationships. Even the youngest children demonstrated an understanding that work has economic, emotional and social purposes. At the same time, clear gender patterns emerged: boys overwhelmingly identified with futures in football, gaming and technology, while girls were more likely to imagine themselves as artists, teachers, doctors or in other caring professions.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland, a new study finds that poor gender equality is the biggest barrier for girls in STEM
Many children explicitly stated that "girls and boys can do whatever jobs they want", yet their examples often reproduced traditional divisions. This tension is important. Children can genuinely believe in equality while still absorbing powerful social cues about what is considered normal or expected.
Interestingly, a significant number of girls aspired to STEM-related roles, while very few boys did. This suggests that progress has been made in encouraging girls into science and medicine, yet boys may be narrowing their aspirations just as early, particularly away from caring or creative professions. Such gendered career thinking is not imposed by children; it is learned through repeated exposure to media, family roles and cultural narratives.
While parents, guardians and teachers were keenly aware of these patterns, many expressed surprise at how early stereotypes appeared and how strongly children's interests reflect what they see around them. There was overwhelming support for the idea that children should learn about work and careers in school, beginning in the early years of primary education.
From RTÉ Brainstorm, how to fix the housework gender gap for Irish kids
Crucially, adults were wary of pushing children too early towards specific jobs. Instead, they emphasised exposure, breadth and helping children develop language to talk about interests and strengths without narrowing future possibilities. Participating teachers felt comfortable discussing work-related topics through stories, play and class discussion, but cited time pressure as a major challenge. Career-related learning was seen as valuable, but only if it could be meaningfully integrated rather than added to an already crowded curriculum.
Across all adult groups, there was strong agreement that durable skills such as self-awareness, creativity, resilience and adaptability matter far more than early knowledge of specific occupations in a world of non-linear career paths. The findings confirm that early career-related learning is already embedded in children’s lives. Ignoring it does not protect children from pressure, but simply leaves powerful influences unexamined.
Rather than introducing formal "career guidance" for young children, the evidence suggests a strengths-based, exploratory approach that helps children reflect on what they enjoy, encounter diverse role models, challenge limiting stereotypes and build confidence in their capacity to grow and adapt. Curriculum reform offers a timely opportunity. With greater emphasis on wellbeing, play and holistic development, early career-related learning can be made visible without overburdening teachers. If we care about equity, wellbeing and lifelong learning, we need to start earlier, not by asking children what they want to be, but by helping them understand that their futures are open, flexible and shaped by who they are becoming.
Follow RTÉ Brainstorm on WhatsApp and Instagram for more stories and updates
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
