Career Expectations and Pathways of Selective and Non-Selective University Students: Insights from Longitudinal Qualitative Research

Career decision-making can be mediated at both individual (e.g. SES) and institutional levels. In stratified educational systems, selective universities provide labor market advantages, such as higher wages and access to prestigious firms, as well as signs of a 'cultural match' shaped by students' internalized status boundaries and notions of professional prestige (Binder, Davies & Bloom, 2016). However, the mechanisms behind these benefits remain underexplored.

This study investigates how various institutional contexts, namely elite and non-elite universities, shape career expectations, perceived employability, and actual career transitions. The study highlights the differences in occupational expectations and career strategies across universities with varying status and selectivity, focusing on the often-overlooked ‘black box’ of the university environment.

During the first stage of the study, drawing upon in-depth interviews (N = 44) with economics and management students from selective and non-selective Russian universities, we demonstrate that despite moderately different SES, students experienced similar career uncertainty when choosing a major. Even slight differences in universities’ selectivity produce significant discrepancies in career expectations, labor market entry strategies, perception of employability capitals and self-efficacy in using them. Elite university students viewed their institution as providing broad competencies, strong employer signals, lasting social connections, professional culture knowledge, and well-developed practical career support, while non-selective university students focused on specialized skills, undervalued their university's reputation, and were less informed about career strategies, were poorly informed about the "rules of the game," and were passive in utilizing the institution's infrastructure capital.

The ongoing second phase includes follow-up interviews with the same participants 2.5 to 3 years after the initial study. By this time, all participants have entered the labor market and gained work experience. This phase explores how their career trajectories have developed, the strategies they adopted, and how their career expectations align with actual outcomes.