Public vs. private job dilemma: Influencing factors in career selection for university graduates

The unprecedented growth of educated workforce following the economic development and diversity in workplace has widened the career choices of young people in Bangladesh. However, it intensifies a dilemma among the job seekers about determining their career goals, because career goals are often influenced by certain socio-demographic and cultural aspects. Hence, this cross-sectional study was designed to investigate the career choices of university students in Bangladesh and to identify its determinants. Administering a self-administered questionnaire (SAQ), data were collected from 422 students at a public university using the multistage stratified sampling. Data were analyzed by bivariate (chi-square) and multivariate (exploratory factor analysis and binary logistic regression) analyses. Findings suggest that the career choices of students vary regarding their gender, religion, and academic track. For example, female (AOR: 0.281; 95% CI: 0.144 to 0.547) and Muslim (AOR: 3.648; 95% CI: 1.765 to 7.542) students preferred public jobs, whereas students of commerce (AOR: 0.344; 95% CI: 0.144 to 0.820) went for private ones. Among socioeconomic issues, only the father's occupation had a substantial effect on career decisions (AOR: 0.347; 95% CI: 0.144 to 0.820). The career choice was also determined by the job prospects (AOR: 1.251; 95% CI: 1.161 to 1.347), preference of family (AOR: 1.238; 95% CI: 1.099 to 1.394), as well as job diversity (AOR: 0.879; 95% CI: 0.795 to 0.972). Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that the government should address the trends and patterns of career choices of students through empirical research when formulating future educational and career-related policies in Bangladesh.