Persistent Disadvantages or New Opportunities? The Role of Agency and Structural Constraints for Low-Achieving Adolescents' School-to-Work Transitions

Is Academic Agency Relevant for the School-to-Work Transition of Lower Attainers? Evidence from Canada and England

Academic agency is recognized as an important predictor of higher education attainment among the general population during the school-to-work transition. However, there is little evidence on whether (a) academic agency is associated with higher education attainment among young people facing education difficulties (i.e., lower attainers), (b) academic agency is associated with a smooth entry in a meaningful job among lower attainers, and (c) these associations vary across educational contexts. This study draws on longitudinal data from lower attainers in the province of Québec (Mage = 16.31, SD = 0.98; 48% females) and in England (Mage = 15.86, SD = 0.72; 42% females), two regions with similar education systems, yet different vocational training provision. In both samples, fewer than one in four participants reach higher education by age 20. Also, in both countries academic agency is associated with a greater likelihood of being in higher education compared to other employment and education outcomes at age 20, but not with rapid entry into meaningful employment. Thus, focussing on higher education attainment and academic-related factors such as academic agency is of limited relevance for understanding lower attainers' success over school-to work transitions. For them, understanding this transition also requires considering rapid entry in meaningful employment, as well as non-academic forms of agency supporting such work-oriented outcomes.

Influence of Person-Vocation Fit on Satisfaction and Persistence in Vocational Training Programs

Positive effects of person-environment fit on job satisfaction and persistence are well documented. However, little is known about the consequences of person-vocation (P-V) fit for vocational education and training (VET). Using data from the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS), we examine the influence of selected P-V fit indicators (educational match, interest congruence, skill congruence) on training satisfaction and premature contract termination (PCT) for 4,097 trainees in VET. We find that most P-V incongruences do not lead to negative consequences. Training satisfaction is not affected by interest congruence and skill congruence. However, moderate overeducation (intermediately qualified adolescents working in occupations with high shares of low-qualified trainees) enhances training satisfaction. For PCT, there is a general effect of undereducation; undereducation increases the probability of PCT independent of educational qualification for the occupation. PCT is not affected by skill congruence and only for Realistic interests, congruence with the vocational environment reduces PCT probability.

Moving Toward Decent Work: Application of the Psychology of Working Theory to the School-to-Work Transition

This conceptual contribution aims to adapt and apply Psychology of Working Theory to the specificities of the school-to-work transition (STWT) process. The STWT is thus conceptualized as a first attempt to access decent work under the influence of specific predictors, mediators, and moderators and leading to particular outcomes. Based on recent literature, we consider that (1) socioeconomic constraints and belonging to marginalized groups are contextual predictors of a successful transition; (2) psychosocial resources, including self-efficacy and adaptability, and vocational and work role identity, are mediators of the relation between contextual factors and a successful transition; (3) moderator factors include the education system, labor market conditions, social support, and critical consciousness; and (4) decent and meaningful work are the optimal outcomes of the STWT process.

How Labor-Market Integration Affects Perceptions of Discrimination: School-to-Apprenticeship Transitions of Youth with Migration Background in Germany

This article examines the relationship between structural integration and perceived discrimination among young people with migration backgrounds in Germany. Assimilation theories expect ethnic boundaries to lessen through minority groups’ upward mobility, while the recently proposed integration paradox asserts that structural integration increases perceptions of discrimination. Using longitudinal data from the German National Educational Panel Study, this article investigates how a successful transition from school to the training market affects young people’s perceptions of ethnic discrimination. Results of propensity score matching and linear probability models show that perceptions of discrimination increase only in response to unsuccessful entry into the training market, partially due to occupational aspirations and personal discrimination experiences. Findings also show that perceptions of discrimination do not increase for young people who are well integrated in the educational system, even if they take up a training position that is not in accordance with their desired profession. These findings highlight the importance of considering perceptions of discrimination in longitudinal and life-course perspectives to better understanding dynamics in these perceptions.