Workers in Hungary question their education and choice of career according to a new international survey

More than a third of workers in Hungary say that if given the chance, they would have studied something totally different after leaving school, while one in four say they chose the wrong career, according to a new international workplace survey.

The survey, by global recruitment firm Kelly Services, found that many Hungarian workers have concerns about the quality of their education - both at school and post school - and many are worried about the career choices they made.

The global survey sought the views of 115,000 people in 33 countries including more than 4,400 in Hungary.

Kelly Services (name & title) said the findings show a high level of concern about career choice and direction.

"Many people in the workforce do not believe that their education properly prepared them for working life and quite a few a have regrets about the direction that their job has taken them".

Amongst the key findings of the survey:

• 76% of people wish that they had studied further.
• 42% of people wish that they had studied something totally different.
• 29% say that they chose the wrong career, while 26% say they are 'not sure'.
• 33% say that their school education did not prepare them well for working life.
• 32% say that their post-school education did not prepare them well for working life.

The findings throw light on how those in the workforce feel about the quality of their country's education system.  The highest level of support for school education came from India with 69% saying it prepared them well for working life.  It was followed by Puerto Rico (67%), Indonesia and Thailand (65%), Poland (63%), Spain (61%), Canada and Hungary (59%), and Japan and Mexico (57%).

The lowest rankings were for Sweden (26%), Norway (27%), Denmark (29%), Turkey (30%), Ukraine (37%), Russia and Italy (39%).

People across the globe were much more satisfied with their post-school education, with a global average of 65% saying it prepared them well for working life.  However, Hungary ranked a lowly 29th with 57% approval, well below the global average.

Women were more satisfied with the quality of their school and post-school education than men.

An overwhelming 71% of people agreed with the proposition that 'post-school/professional education should be more practical and less theoretical".

In Hungary, 45% of respondents were happy with their career choice, while 29% said they had made the wrong choice and 26% were 'not sure'.

"It is only natural that people reflect in a positive way on what they have done and the extent to which they have achieved their professional goals," (name) said.

"It is to be expected that many wish they had worked harder while at school, college or university. There are also many who have had second thoughts about the career choices they made.

"Regrettably, someone who discovers that they are in the wrong career is probably not as productive as they could be and may be missing out on a more fulfilling professional life.

"It's also important that people don't over react or set up false expectations in evaluating their study and career choices.

"It is now the norm for most employees to have several career changes in the course of a working life, so it's possible for someone who is dissatisfied with their career to do something positive about it".

Both men and women cited 'financial' considerations as the major obstacle to changing career, followed by 'time' and 'family'.

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ: KELYA, KELYB) is a world leader in human resources solutions headquartered in Troy, Michigan, offering temporary staffing services, outsourcing, vendor on-site and full-time placement. Kelly operates in 37 countries and territories.  Kelly provides employment to more than 750,000 employees annually, with skills including office services, accounting, engineering, information technology, law, science, marketing, creative services, light industrial, education, and health care. Revenue in 2007 was $5.7 billion.  Visit www.kellyservices.com.

Media contact: 

Anikó Jónás

General Manager

Tel: 354-2770

Email: ajonas@kellyservices.hu