Career aspirations of the students preparing to work as teachers in Poland, Latvia and Ukraine

ABSTRACT

The aim of the research was to diagnose and describe the professional aspirations of students preparing to become teachers in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine. The diagnostic survey method was used in the research. The analysis of the results revealed both similarities and differences among students’ job aspirations. In the range of factors diversifying students’ job aspirations, there were both those referred to personality as well as of demographic and social nature such as family size, advantages of a future job, ways to gain employment, place of residence, chance to get a job, economic situation, self-assessment of possessed knowledge and skills.

KEYWORDS:

• Latvia
• Poland
• Ukraine
• professional job aspirations
• teacher’s profession

Introduction

Aspirations are one of the components of human personality that makes them an object of interest to psychology, sociology, as well as pedagogy (Domina, Conley, and Farkas 2011; Marjoribanks 1997). In the scientific language of these disciplines, there is no consensus on the concept of aspirations, which results – despite the current terminology discussions – in the lack of one universal definition of the term (Pomykało 1993, 195; Rojewski 2005).

On the other hand, in pedagogical works, general encyclopaedia definitions are generally used, as well as the definitions of sociological nature; they are often definitions combining the content of both abovementioned definitions in which aspirations are defined as a desire for something, the pursuit of something in life, e.g. to achieve specific goals, a desire for implementing ambitious plans, tasks; strong desire or aim, ambition (a definition from the English Dictionary, https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/aspiration), a desire to achieve something, such as success (Lewowicki and Galas 1987, 20). Generally speaking, aspirations are an important element in the development of human personality, and at the same time, one of the essential factors determining social and cultural activity, along with establishing interpersonal contacts, various achievements, and choices (Bandura, Freeman, and Lightsey 1999; Gorard, See, and Davies 2012; Quaglia and Casey 1996). Aspirations are, therefore, of key importance in the process of life plan shaping and an individual’s life orientation (Caprara et al. 2008; Zawada 2013, 14).

It should be emphasised that it is practically impossible to determine in detail the typology of those objects and the areas in which aspirations manifest themselves. Nevertheless, attempts are made to identify the basic areas in which human aspirations occur (Galas and Lewowicki 1991, 34–35; Kintrea, Clair, and Houston 2011). In the literature on the subject, we find, therefore, different suggested types of aspirations, e.g. current, perspective, wishful, operational, educational, social, personal, recreational, economic, and others. The multi-shaped and changing reality constantly generates new aspirations aimed at the emergence of new goals. Besides, individual types of aspirations are, in fact, very rare in their pure form. They usually intersect and connect to create configurations specific to each individual (Jæger 2007; Pilch 2003, 200; Rojewski 2005). According to Anishchenko (2014), aspirations are meaningful life orientations that specify the activity capable of adjusting the orientation of the individual, contributing to the mobilisation of vital resources. Therefore, as emphasised by Palka (2010, 33) and Hart (2016), the interests of researchers who study aspirations are focused on their numerous and varied aspects, e.g. diagnosis (content, intensity, frequency of occurrence), analysis of the conditions of aspirations (especially the environment) and the influence of aspirations on human actions.

Understanding young people’s aspirations creates the opportunity to anticipate and understand the mechanisms of their behaviour (Jæger 2007; Sanders and Munford 2008) and motivation based on career orientations (social, professional, or pragmatic) towards integration, service, and autonomy (Stoliarchuk 2016). It is also crucial from the point of view of changes in the labour market, as well as rapidly changing socio-economic reality, since students are facing numerous decisions regarding their further education, professional work, personal life, and participation in social and political reality (Jeffrey and McDowell 2004; Umesh et al. 2018). It should also be emphasised that students form a group essential for the development of the social elite, which is a determinant of the future of society in various areas of life. The issue of the impact of the university education is also significant since it possesses specific features through which one can describe the learners, that is, young people participating in the learning process because they are already formed in many aspects by the time they enter the university (they already have certain aspirations). Nevertheless, they still remain in the process of intensive development. Thus, the formation of the future teacher in the educational process at the university includes not only acquiring definite knowledge and skills, but also the formation of professionally oriented attitudes, interests, values, and specific skills required in the future (Goncharova 2015; Yanovska 2021, 251), specifically for their ongoing professional self-development, including self-cognition, self-management, and self-study skills (Pliushch et al. 2021, 57).

In this study, professional aspirations of the pedagogical students determine the object of research interests. Professional aspirations refer to the group of aspirations, which deal with the type of profession, functions being performed within it, the workplace, and the position held.

They can take the form of aspirations for effective professional activity, achieving success in work, or effective dealings (Gutman and Akerman 2008; Pilch 2003, 199). Undoubtedly, this area also includes earning aspirations related to, among other things, expected salary and income level.

Professional aspirations, along with strongly correlated with educational aspirations (Ziejewski 2007, 17), are the main component of the whole structure of aspirations because they deal with the most essential vital areas, important both in the current and future life situations. They often manifest themselves in the pursuit of the developing desirable attributes of the mind, will, character, and emotional life culture, e.g. the desire to improve knowledge in a given field, to gain additional qualifications, or acquire new skills (Mau and Bikos 2000; Rojewski 2005). Aspirations referring to the profession, performed functions, workplace, and qualifications remain in a strong connection with various desires and wishes of an individual. They are reflected in the individual’s life plans, among other things, related to the arrangement of personal and family life, place of residence, possession of certain goods that set the standard of living, as the preferred pattern of participation in culture, forms of spending free time and other areas of life in which the individual is involved (Wong 2016; Zikic and Klehe 2006). As Wiśniewski emphasises (Wiśniewski 2011, 84–85), young people should permanently improve in terms of their profession in order to be able to decide their own fate independently and manage their skills rationally.

Current students, seeking the answer to their needs and motivating professional aspirations, will be the executors and participants of socio-cultural and educational changes in the near future. However, the substantive side of those aspirations and their achievement can either foster or damage the abovementioned changes.

Besides, today, after the onset of Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, a special focus in further research should be given to the shift in professional aspirations of the students preparing to become teachers in the realities of military aggression, in particular, when media education is a key trend in the development of higher education (Malimon et al. 2022, 160).

Materials and methods

The aim of the research was to diagnose and describe the professional aspirations of students preparing to become teachers in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine. The research also sought the answers to the following questions: what professional aspirations are typical of students preparing to become teachers, and what personality, demographic, and social factors influence the diversity of students’ professional aspirations in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine? The research was diagnostic in nature, hence the authors refrained from formulating hypotheses, which is consistent, in particular, with the proposals of Łobocki (2006) and Maszke (2008). It was assumed that the collected empirical material would be the basis for describing the professional aspirations of the students preparing to become teachers in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine, as well as for planning further research on the issues under consideration.

The study carried out in January 2022 was attended by students studying pedagogy at three universities located in Central and Eastern Europe: in Poland – Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities (Siedlce), in Latvia – Daugavpils University (Daugavpils), and in Ukraine – Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. The research used the diagnostic survey method with the author’s questionnaire containing 24 questions for conducting a survey in the classroom. The questionnaire was distributed among 280 students, while 246 completed forms were qualified for the analysis. The results obtained in the study were subjected to the statistical analysis. The statistical significance of differences between more than two means was tested using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Since this test only indicates the existence of statistically significant differences, it does not inform, however, between which compared pairs, in fact, those differences actually occurred; subsequent post hoc testing was used with the Dunnett T3 test (no homogeneity of variance). The significance of relationships between qualitative (nominal) variables was checked using the chi-square independence test. Correlations between the rank variables were checked using Kendall’s tau-b correlation coefficient. This coefficient takes the values from + 1 (strong positive correlation; with the increase of one variable, the second variable increases) through 0 (no correlation) to −1 (strong negative correlation, an increase in the value of one variable decreases the value of the second variable). The significance level of p = 0.05 was adopted in the statistical analyses. The analyses were performed using the SPSS programme.

Results

Characteristics of the surveyed students

The study included 246 students from three different countries: Poland (N = 88; 35.8%), Latvia (N = 82; 33.3%), and Ukraine (N = 76; 30.9%). The average age of the respondents was 20.3 years of age, with a standard deviation of 1.61 years. The majority of the surveyed students were predominantly women (90%). The highest percentage of women was found in the group from Ukraine (96% of the respondents from that country), a slightly smaller percentage in the group from Poland, and the lowest one among the students from Latvia (80.5%). The largest percentage of the respondents lived in villages (37%); 24% of respondents lived in towns with a population of up to 50,000 people; 21% of respondents – in towns with a population of up to 100,000; the research group was supplemented by people from cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (18%). The average size of the respondents’ family was 4.4 people (deviation = 1.48), and at least half of the respondents had a family of at least four members; this was also the modal value of the analysed group. The distribution of the variable ranged from 1 to 11 people in the family. The range of 4 to 6 family members made up the largest group (140 people). The respondents from Poland (4.8) had the largest families, followed by the students from Latvia (4.2), the most minor families were recorded among Ukrainians (4.0). The analysis of data on the level of education of the surveyed students’ parents showed the prevalence of secondary (36%) and vocational (37%) education among the respondents’ mothers. A slightly smaller group was represented by women with higher education (22%). The group was supplemented by mothers who had primary education or, according to the respondents, had no education at all (1.2%). As for the fathers, vocational education (51%) slightly prevailed over secondary education (33%). The percentage of males with higher (8%) and primary (7%) education was low. The group was supplemented by the fathers without education (2%). The students participating in the study were asked to assess their current financial situation. Most stated that their financial situation was average (58%). Nearly 29% of the respondents rated it as good or very good. The rest of the respondents described their financial situation as bad (11%) or were unable to assess it (3%).

Respondents’ thoughts about their future careers

When choosing a future job, the priority category for the respondents was ‘interesting profession’ (62%), less often ‘high earnings’ (17%), ‘independence’ (9%), ‘easy job’ (6%), ‘scientific career’ (4%) or ‘chance for promotion’ (2%). The category ‘interesting profession’ was most often indicated by Ukrainians (87%), less often by Poles (58%), and least often by Latvians (55%). In addition, Latvian and Polish students often pointed to ‘high earnings’ (28% and 18% respectively), and Poles additionally valued ‘independence’ (14%). The difference between the groups is statistically significant (P = 0.001) (Table 1).

Table 1. What is the priority for the interviewees when choosing a future job? Distribution of responses divided into interviewed groups (excluding the low turnout responses < 4%).

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
What is your priority when choosing a future job?	High income	Number of respondents	5	22	15
		% of Answers	11.9%	52.4%	35.7%
		% from the state	7.1%	28.2%	17.9%
	Easy job	Number of respondents	1	5	8
		% of Answers	7.1%	35.7%	57.1%
		% from the state	1.4%	6.4%	9.5%
	Interesting profession	Number of respondents	61	43	49
		% of Answers	39.9%	28.1%	32.0%
		% from the state	87.1%	55.1%	58.3%
	Independence	Number of respondents	3	8	12
		% of Answers	13.0%	34.8%	52.2%
		% from the state	4.3%	10.3%	14.3%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 23.98; p = 0.001

Source: Own study.

Among the advantages that, according to students, should be present in their future profession, they most often indicated such as: ‘nice atmosphere’ (44%) and ‘high earnings’ (36%). However, such advantages as ‘free weekends’ (13%) and ‘possibility of rapid promotion’ (7%) were mentioned less frequently. The ‘nice atmosphere’ advantage was most often mentioned by students from Ukraine and Latvia, respectively, 55% and 49%. At the same time, students from Poland paid attention to the ‘high pay’ benefit (55%). The analysis, by means of the chi-square independence test, showed that the discussed differences are statistically significant (P = 0.001) (Table 2).

Table 2. What important advantages should the future profession have? Distribution of responses divided into interviewed groups.

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
What important advantages should the future profession have?	High earnings	Number of respondents	17	24	48
		% of Answers	19.1%	27.0%	53.9%
		% from the state	22.4%	29.3%	54.5%
	Possibility of rapid promotion	Number of respondents	5	7	5
		% of Answers	29.4%	41.2%	29.4%
		% from the state	6.6%	8.5%	5.7%
	Nice atmosphere	Number of respondents	42	40	26
		% of Answers	38.9%	37.0%	24.1%
		% from the state	55.3%	48.8%	29.5%
	Free weekends	Number of respondents	12	11	9
		% of Answers	37.5%	34.4%	28.1%
		% from the state	15.8%	13.4%	10.2%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 21.61; p = 0.001

Source: Own study.

Students who participated in the study were asked: ‘Are you ready to sacrifice your time and work for free to improve the skills necessary for your future job?’ Most often, their answers were: ‘definitely yes’ (16%) and ‘rather yes’ (44%). 27% of respondents held the opposite opinion. The rest of the students did not have any opinion on the issue (13%). The analysis using the chi-square independence test did not show any statistically significant differences between the three interviewed groups (P = 0.071) (Table 3).

Table 3. Is the respondent ready to sacrifice his/her time and work for free to improve skills necessary in his/her future job? - distribution of responses divided into interviewed groups.

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
Are you ready to sacrifice your time and work for free to improve the skills necessary for your future job?	Definitely yes	Number of respondents	7	13	20
		% of Answers	17.5%	32.5%	50.0%
		% from the state	10.8%	18.6%	26.0%
	Rather, yes	Number of respondents	37	29	41
		% of Answers	34.6%	27.1%	38.3%
		% from the state	56.9%	41.4%	53.2%
	Probably not	Number of respondents	14	22	12
		% of Answers	29.2%	45.8%	25.0%
		% from the state	21.5%	31.4%	15.6%
	Definitely not	Number of respondents	7	6	4
		% of Answers	41.2%	35.3%	23.5%
		% from the state	10.8%	8.6%	5.2%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 11.63; p = 0.071

Source: Own study.

Yet, a statistically significant relationship was found between the size of the family and readiness for unpaid work (P = 0.009). The respondents who had a large family were more likely to work for free to improve their qualifications (Table 4).

Table 4. The relationship between the size of the family and readiness for unpaid work. Tau b Kendall’s coefficient.

			Readiness for unpaid work
Tau b Kendall	Family size	Correlation coefficient	−0.151
		Significance (two-sided)	0.009

Source: Own study.

A high percentage of respondents (60%) were students determined to change their place of residence to get their dream job. The opposite opinion was expressed by 14% of students, and the remaining group (26%) did not have any opinion on the matter. There were no statistically significant differences between the students from Ukraine, Latvia, and Poland (P = 0.729).

Factors determining the possibility of getting a job

For the majority of the surveyed students, ‘interests’ had a decisive (24%) or large (48%) impact on the decision to choose a teaching profession. 20% of respondents marked that it had a low impact, while the rest (8%) recognised that ‘interests’ did not affect their choice of occupation at all. There were no statistically significant connections between the interviewed groups (P = 0.290). When asked whether the interviewee would like to continue professional family traditions in the future, most students (56%) gave a negative answer. Only 17% of the respondents would be willing to continue professional family traditions in the future. Other students (27%) could not give a clear answer to this question. The analysis using the chi-square test did not show statistically significant differences between the interviewed groups (P = 0.525). In the opinion of 49% of the surveyed students, their professional future will depend primarily on their own efforts, as well as on their knowledge and skills (25%). The rest of the respondents decided that their position in the future depends on favourable circumstances (11%), wit and connections (family arrangements) (9%), luck (3%), and their parents’ efforts (1%). The students in each studied group expressed the opinion that their professional future would depend mainly on their own efforts. Polish students, more often than others, counted on favourable circumstances (18.5%) and friendly arrangements (19%). Ukrainians and Latvians often pointed out that the future depends on their knowledge and skills (32%). The analysis by means of the chi-square independence test shows that the discussed differences between the interviewed groups are statistically significant (P = 0.001) (Table 5).

Table 5. What will the future of the interviewee depend on? Distribution of responses divided into interviewed groups (excluding low turnout responses < 3%).

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
What will your professional future depend on?	Favourable circumstances	Number of respondents	7	5	15
		% of Answers	25.9%	18.5%	55.6%
		% from the state	9.6%	6.7%	18.5%
	My efforts and hard work	Number of respondents	41	42	37
		% of Answers	34.2%	35.0%	30.8%
		% from the state	56.2%	56.0%	45.7%
	My knowledge and skills	Number of respondents	23	24	14
		% of Answers	37.7%	39.3%	23.0%
		% from the state	31.5%	32.0%	17.3%
	My wit and connections (family arrangements)	Number of respondents	2	4	15
		% of Answers	9.5%	19.0%	71.4%
		% from the state	2.7%	5.3%	18.5%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 22.50; p = 0.001

Source: Own study.

Chances of employment and life perspectives related to it

In their attempts to assess the chances of getting a job as a teacher, the students most often stated that it would be difficult (49%) or very difficult (9%), less than 1% of the respondents said there was no chance of getting that job. In turn, 29% of the respondents believed that it would be easy to get a job, while other students (13%) never thought about it. The distribution of responses in the groups indicated that students from Poland were the most pessimistic. As many as 23% of them decided that finding a job would be very difficult or impossible, 68% said it would be difficult, whereas only 10% thought it would be easy. Ukrainian students were the most optimistic: 57% of people in that group rated their chances as high, and only 7% expressed the opinion that it would be very difficult or impossible. Differences between the groups are statistically significant (P < 0.001) (Table 6).

Table 6. Chances assessment of getting a job as a teacher. Distribution of answers divided into interviewed groups.

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
How easy do you think it will be to get a job as a teacher?	Easy	Number of respondents	35	27	8
		% of Answers	50.0%	38.6%	11.4%
		% from the state	57.4%	37.0%	10.0%
	Difficult	Number of respondents	22	44	54
		% of Answers	18.3%	36.7%	45.0%
		% from the state	36.1%	60.3%	67.5%
	Very difficult or no chances	Number of respondents	4	2	18
		% of Answers	16.7%	8.3%	75.0%
		% from the state	6.6%	2.7%	22.5%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 45.76; p < 0.001

Source: Own study.

In addition, a statistically significant relationship was found between the family size (p = 0.002), place of residence (p = 0.006), and the assessment of chances to get a job as a teacher. The respondents from large families living in rural areas or small towns were often more sceptical (‘very difficult’ or ‘no chance’) in assessing their chances of finding a job as a teacher (Table 7).

Table 7. The relationship between family size, place of residence, and the assessment of chances to get a job in the teaching profession. Tau b Kendall’s coefficient.

			How does the respondent assess his/her chances of getting a job?
Tau b Kendall	Family size	Correlation coefficient	0.182
		Significance (two-sided)	0.002
	Place of residence	Correlation coefficient	−0.167
		Significance (two-sided)	0.006

Source: Own study.

Among the surveyed students, a significant part is afraid that in the future, they will not be able to find a job (strong anxiety − 24%, mild anxiety − 44%). The rest of the respondents (29%) were more optimistic about that issue, being convinced that they would find a job in the future. The greatest concern about unemployment was observed among students from Poland (90% of the group), definitely less among students from Latvia (64%), and the least concern was expressed by students from Ukraine (53%). Differences between the groups are statistically significant (P < 0.001) (Table 8).

Table 8. Sense of unemployment threat. Distribution of answers divided into interviewed groups.

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
Do you feel threatened by unemployment?	Yes, I’m afraid I will not find a job	Number of respondents	12	9	38
		% of Answers	20.3%	15.3%	64.4%
	Yes, but I’m slightly worried	% from the state	16.0%	11.3%	45.2%
		Number of respondents	28	42	38
		% of Answers	25.9%	38.9%	35.2%
		% from the state	37.3%	52.5%	45.2%
	No, I suppose I will find a job	Number of respondents	28	23	8
		% of Answers	47.5%	39.0%	13.6%
		% from the state	37.3%	28.8%	9.5%
	No, I will definitely find a job	Number of respondents	7	6	0
		% of Answers	53.8%	46.2%	0.0%
		% from the state	9.3%	7.5%	0.0%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 44.99; p < 0.001

Source: Own study.

A statistically significant relationship was also found between the place of residence (p = 0.001), financial situation (p = 0.016), self-assessment of the possessed knowledge (p = 0.014), association of the future with going abroad (p = 0.002), and the sense of the threat of unemployment. The respondents from villages and small towns, with poor financial situation, low self-esteem, and wishing to work abroad, were more likely to express concern about unemployment (Table 9).

Table 9. The relationship between the place of residence, financial situation, self-assessment of knowledge, association of the future with going abroad, and a sense of being threatened by unemployment. Tau b Kendall’s coefficient.

			Does the respondent feel threatened by unemployment?
Tau b Kendall	Place of residence	Correlation coefficient	0.181
		Significance (two-sided)	0.001
	Assessment of the financial situation	Correlation coefficient	−0.138
		Significance (two-sided)	0.016
	Self-assessment of the existing skills and knowledge?	Correlation coefficient	−0.150
		Significance (two-sided)	0.014
	Association of the professional future with going abroad	Correlation coefficient	0.172
		Significance (two-sided)	0.002

Source: Own study.

Most students (40%) could not determine whether their future career would involve going abroad. Nearly 17% of the respondents would take such a step, and the rest of the respondents did not associate their future with going abroad (31% - probably not, 12% - definitely not). The chi-square analysis did not show statistically significant differences between the students from Ukraine, Latvia, and Poland (P = 0.456) (Table 10).

Table 10. Does the interviewee associate his/her professional future with going abroad? - distribution of responses divided into interviewed groups.

			Country
			Ukraine	Latvia	Poland
Do you associate your professional future with going abroad?	Definitely yes	Number of respondents	3	2	6
		% of Answers	27.3%	18.2%	54.5%
		% from the state	3.9%	2.5%	6.8%
	Rather, yes	Number of respondents	9	11	10
		% of Answers	30.0%	36.7%	33.3%
		% from the state	11.8%	13.9%	11.4%
	I don’t know	Number of respondents	24	37	37
		% of Answers	24.5%	37.8%	37.8%
		% from the state	31.6%	46.8%	42.0%
	Probably not	Number of respondents	31	21	24
		% of Answers	40.8%	27.6%	31.6%
		% from the state	40.8%	26.6%	27.3%
	Definitely not	Number of respondents	9	8	11
		% of Answers	32.1%	28.6%	39.3%
		% from the state	11.8%	10.1%	12.5%
Chi-square test of independence			χ^2 = 7.77; p = 0.456

Source: Own study.

On the other hand, a statistically significant relationship was found between the respondents’ financial situation and the attachment of their professional future to going abroad (p = 0.042). The respondents who indicated a difficult (bad) financial situation were more willing to go abroad (Table 11).

Table 11. The relationship between the financial situation and the connection of their professional future with going abroad. Tau b Kendall’s coefficient.

			Associating professional future with going abroad
Tau b Kendall	Assessment of the financial situation	Correlation coefficient	−0.114
		Significance (two-sided)	0.042

Source: Own study.

The vast majority of students (60%) mentioned that in the future, they would like to find a job first and later on to start a family. Conversely, 19% of respondents would do it the other way round, while 21% could not give a definite answer to this question There were no statistically significant differences between the students from Ukraine, Latvia, and Poland (p = 0.052).

The respondents most often mentioned such forms of job search as: personal or telephone contacts with various institutions (35%), through friends (17%), online resources (14%), press advertisements, leaflets, etc. (11%), through the employment office (11%). The distribution of the respondents’ answers in particular groups showed that mainly students from Ukraine and Latvia would look for a job by contacting institutions in person or by phone (51% and 45%), whereas Polish students did not mention any particular method. Most often, they pointed to personal or telephone contacts with institutions (25%), advertisements (24%), and through friends (21%). Differences between the groups are statistically significant (p = 0.002).

Discussion and conclusions

Aspirations occupy a special place in the views on the future profession of young people who are studying. They are significantly determined by the objective conditions of the society in which the individual exists, as well as his/her own individual predispositions. The comparative analysis of students’ aspirations and professional plans showed similarities and differences in the opinions of the respondents studying at the pedagogical departments of the universities in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine and preparing to become teachers.

Regarding the respondents’ ideas about their future professional work, based on the analysed research results, it was found that more than ¾ of the students from Ukraine and more than half of the students from Poland and Latvia would consider the category ‘interesting occupation’ as the main criterion when choosing their future profession. The criteria such as ‘high earnings’, ‘easy job’ or ‘independence’ would definitely less determine their choice. It should be emphasised that the categories of ‘high earnings’ and ‘independence’, when chosen, were most often preferred by the respondents from Poland and Latvia. On the one hand, such a distribution of responses may be optimistic in the context of the needs stated by the students in terms of their future work. On the other hand, it reveals certain links with the lifestyle promoted through mass media in the youth culture of the EU countries, creating an idealised image of a materially and morally ‘independent’ unit. This position was also partially confirmed by the views of the respondents regarding the advantages that their future profession should have. Almost half of the respondents marked the following criteria as the most desirable: ‘nice atmosphere in the workplace’ and ‘high pay’. The last of the above-mentioned criteria was most often chosen by the students from Poland and least often from Ukraine. These results suggest that students in their future professional work expect high salaries and a pleasant atmosphere in the place of employment. In addition, the criterion that was appreciated mainly by the students from Latvia was the ‘possibility of rapid promotion’ as an important asset of future work. Such a set of results, although it is difficult to judge the students’ motivation, suggests a diverse approach of the respondents to their future work. There are both instrumental and autotelic motives, as well as hubristic motivation, which can be exemplified by the ‘the possibility of rapid promotion’ asset indicated by the respondents.

Aspirations are factors strictly determining human behaviour; they imply, among others, human activities related to the implementation of professional plans and intentions (Shumba and Naong 2012). The results of the research indicated that almost half of the academic youth, mainly from Poland and Latvia, would be willing to devote their time in the future and work for free in order to improve the skills necessary for the future profession. It was also noted that students from large families more often expressed readiness to work for free to advance their qualifications. In addition, more than half of the students would be willing to relocate in order to take up their dream job. Considering the above, it can be stated that students, knowing the socio-economic realities of the country they live in, accept them. Moreover, they intend to realise those values and aspirations that create a potential chance for their future professional stability, even at the expense of certain financial sacrifices or even a change of place of residence. Similar research results, indicating that students would decide to move to another city in order to find employment, were received by Gałązka (2015). At the same time, it can be assumed that the respondents declare a higher level of professional willingness in terms of ideas about their future work than in terms of readiness to undertake it. As far as the area of imagination is concerned, individuals may display predispositions to transgressive behaviour. On the other hand, in a more specific (operational) area, the level of these predispositions may turn out to be relatively low. Clarification of this issue would certainly require repeating the research on the same group of respondents within a few years after the end of these studies.

Aspirations appear and are formed in close dependency on a variety of personal and environmental, including cultural (Kim, Kasser, and Lee 2003), ethnic, economic, and pedagogical factors (Reynolds and Pemberton 2001). It is difficult, however, to determine clearly which of these factors is decisive in shaping human aspirations (Kazi and Akhlaq 2017). The analysis of data collected in the research has shown that for nearly 3/4 of all the surveyed students, their interests had a ‘determined’ or ‘big’ impact on the choice of pedagogical studies and teaching profession in the future. On the basis of the respondents’ opinions, it can be assumed that the choice of the teaching profession was mainly dictated by independent, rational premises and not by the suggestions of people from their close surroundings or the community to which the respondents belong. A similar percentage of the surveyed students denied the desire to continue family traditions in the future. The assumption can be made that modern mechanisms of the family environment do not form a strong source of stimulation in the area of choices and actions of the younger generation. In the changing and complex reality, young people increasingly depend on themselves, their skills, and their knowledge. As noted by Kabaj (2012, 54), ‘in the specific situation on the labour market, the chances of finding employment by young people will depend mainly on their theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to perform a specific job’. This statement is partially supported by the opinions of the surveyed students regarding the factors that determine their chances of getting a job. The vast majority of students from Ukraine and Latvia, less often from Poland, believe their professional future depends primarily on: ‘their own efforts’, ‘hard work’ as well as ‘knowledge and skills’. This suggests that a sense of agency clearly emerges in those who are likely to believe their professional future depends on ‘favourable circumstances’ and ‘wit and connections (acquaintances)’, which is definitely worrying.

Academic youth, aware of the current, still unstable situation in the labour market, assesses their chances of employment in the teaching profession rather reservedly. Polish students seem to be the most pessimistic in this aspect. Almost ¾ of the people in this group assume that finding a job adequate to their education will be ‘very difficult’ or ‘impossible’. Students from Latvia express slightly less concern about their chances of finding a job. In turn, the most optimistic students are from Ukraine. Over half of the people in this group assess their chances of being employed as ‘high’. In addition, it is noted that students from large families, as well as those living in rural areas or small towns, are more often sceptical (‘very difficult’ or with ‘no chance’) when assessing their chances of finding a job in the teaching profession. The presence of students’ fears about getting a job is also confirmed by the data on the sense of the threat of unemployment. The greatest fear of unemployment is expressed by students from Poland, slightly less often – by the respondents from Latvia. On the other hand, students from Ukraine have the least concerns about it. Moreover, the concern about unemployment is often shown by students from villages and small towns who are in a difficult financial situation, with low self-assessment of their skills, and those who associate their professional future with going abroad. Despite the low optimistic views of students concerning their chances of finding a job and a relatively high sense of the threat of unemployment, nearly half of the respondents do not associate their professional future with going abroad. Only 17% of the respondents (mainly from Poland and Latvia) would take such a step. At the same time, it is noted that students who declare a difficult (bad) financial situation would be more willing to go abroad.

Work is undoubtedly a determinant of a person’s place in society, a factor of personality formation, a sense of duty, and responsibility. It also guarantees necessary social contact to the individual and the implementation of his/her various needs (Heller, Judge, and Watson 2002; Warr 2008). Analysis of the research results showed that work is an extremely important life goal for students. The vast majority (60%) of the respondents, regardless of their country of origin, declare that in the future, they first intend to find a job in order to achieve relative financial stability and only then start a family. Among the most preferred methods of job search for almost half of students from Latvia and Ukraine are those based on independent, personal, or telephone contact with potential employers. Students from Poland did not focus on one specific method. If the interviewers insisted, they most often indicated such methods as job advertisements, through friends, as well as personal or telephone contacts with a potential employer.

The content presented in the given study is only a contribution to further research due to the fragmentary nature of the empirical analyses conducted in the area of aspirations and professional plans of young people studying in Poland, Latvia, and Ukraine. Undoubtedly, some interesting data on this subject could be provided by studies based on the research carried out among university graduates, with a focus on the aspect of implementation of professional aspirations. In addition, since this study was conducted before the beginning of the full-scale military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, new challenges will need to be taken into account in further studies. Due to numerous problems in the field of education caused by the war, such as the complete destruction or displacement of a number of Ukrainian universities, dangerous conditions, and the emergence of a situation where many students and their families were forced to go abroad or become internally displaced persons, the needs, priorities, and aspirations of Ukrainian students have also changed. This issue requires further in-depth research.

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Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Notes on contributors

Alicja Antas-Jaszczuk

Alicja Antas-Jaszczuk Research interests Adult education, social support for individuals at risk of social exclusion; issues of aspirations at the level of higher education in Eastern European countries, selected problems of the teacher’s work. Institute of Pedagogy, Department of Social Sciences, University of Siedlce, Poland.

Agnieszka Roguska

Agnieszka Roguska Research interests Media education on a micro and macro scale; professional and life aspirations of pedagogy students from Eastern Europe; cultural education and consumerism; addiction. Institute of Pedagogy, Department of Social Sciences, University of Siedlce, Poland.

Viktoriya Loboda

Viktoriya Loboda Research interests Entrepreneurship education, social entrepreneurship and social project management; IT in education and eLearning; design thinking, cross-cultural communication. Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Department of Social Pedagogy and Social Work, Faculty of Pedagogical Education, Ukraine.

Jelena Davidova

Jelena Davidova Research interests Activity and competencies of a music teacher; integrated music education process in preschool and primary school; internal quality of the education system; organisation’s learning culture; psychological aspects of the music education process; teaching/learning strategies in music education. Daugavpils University, Department of Pedagogy and Pedagogical Psychology, Latvia.