Continuous Profession Skill Talent Focus All Doctor 33.3% 9.9% 24.4% 22.5% F1 Driver 6.9% 16.0% 16.8% 13.3% Pilot 17.1% 5.3% 17.3% 13.3% Actor 1.4% 21.3% 2.1% 8.2% Footballer 2.0% 18.7% 1.8% 7.4% Lawyer 9.7% 3.9% 6.3% 6.6% Computing / IT 7.6% 5.7% 6.1% 6.4% Nurse 5.4% 2.5% 8.3% 5.4% Engineer 8.8% 2.8% 3.9% 5.1% Teacher 3.7% 6.5% 5.2% 5.1% Accountant 2.2% 0.9% 4.8% 2.7% Journalist 0.4% 4.1% 0.8% 1.7% MP 0.9% 1.3% 1.1% 1.1%
When asked which professions they could perform with training, the highest proportion of Brits (12.4%) chose Teaching. Nursing was the second most popular with 10.2% feeling that they could carve out a successful career given instruction. This trend may be down to the perception of talent needed in these professions. Only 6.5% and 2.5% of Brits feel that the highest levels of natural talent are required as a teacher or nurse. However, those currently in these professions would argue it is the skill of a good teacher or nurse to make a highly skilled and high-pressure job look easy.
If people were given the opportunity to start their career from scratch, the largest proportion of people (11.8%) would like to go into acting. 10.1% would like to be a lawyer, while teaching and journalism were both equal with 9.8%. The least desirable profession is being a Member of Parliament with only 2.8% of Brits feeling they’d choose to be an MP if they could have their time again.
Mark Bull, CEO of Randstad UK and Middle East, commented: “It’s fascinating to see how different professions are perceived and for many the grass will always appear greener on the other side of the fence. Doctors are held in the highest regard by the British public but clearly all professions require dedication, skill and focus but these results provide some food for thought about how some professions are sometimes perceived.”
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