Career Aspirations of Urban, Mexican American Adolescent Females

Abstract

The gender distribution of jobs remains vastly disproportionate, especially among minority groups: Women continue to be overrepresented in traditionally femaleoccupied jobs and underrepresented in high-status, high-paying occupations. Literature on gender distribution of careers and factors affecting career choice remains sparse where ethnic minority females are concerned. The present study attempts to fill this gap and focuses on adolescent females from Mexican American backgrounds. Descriptive findings indicate the general male dominance of females’career aspirations. Compared to females aspiring to highly female-dominated careers, females aspiring to highly male-dominated careers were more acculturated, earned higher grade point averages (GPAs) and higher achievement scores in science and social studies, and held higher educational aspirations and expectations, and a greater number of this group evidenced a clear understanding of the steps needed to achieve career goals. Findings are discussed in terms of their contradiction of previous findings and Mexican cultural norms.