According to the data of the All-Russian Scientific and Research Institute of Vocational Technical Education, about 40% of 1st year students of vocational schools are not satisfied with their chosen profession, and 40-60% of senior students of higher educational institutions do not want to work in their chosen profession. Studies show that only 10% of students adequately assess their abilities.
And some more figures:

• 25% of students choose their profession on the advice of friends;
• 17% on the advice of their parents;
• 9% are driven by random factors (e.g. the geographical proximity of the educational institution);
• 10% of students choose an occupation influenced by the media;
• the rest are guided by an interest in the content of the work.
  According to the Unified Tariff and Qualification Guide, there are more than 50,000 professions in the world. In Russia, there are more than 7,000 of them. This means that about 43 thousand professions do not exist in Russia yet. This may be due to climatic, social and economic conditions or the lack of demand for some kind of activity, or simply this or that area has not yet become relevant to us.

The period of labor activity in human life is limited, and therefore it is somehow offensive to spend 8 hours of your life every day on an unfavorable business. In this connection there is a question of professional self-determination. The question is relevant not only for those who finish school, but also for adults who suddenly realize that they are not doing what they want, but what they have done. So how do we choose a professional path and minimize possible mistakes and disappointments?

What prevents us from making the right choices?

1. Ignorance of the world of professions – existing and relevant in the future.
   Existing professions are sometimes evaluated on the basis of the knowledge that Aunt Clava’s son works in a bank and Marjpetrovna works as an engineer in a factory. It does not matter that Aunt Klava’s son is not the owner of the bank, but just an accountant. The accountants always think that they literally sit on sacks of money and turn millions for their own benefit. And the psychologist is perceived as a walking X-ray of human souls. Hence the very common jokes about “you’re a doctor”, “you’re a translator”, “you’re a manager” and so on. Thus, it turns out that most people do not know the specifics of some professions and have an extremely superficial idea about their content. As for the promising professions, the time when everybody was trying to become economists and lawyers has gone irrevocably. Today, there are more than enough representatives of these professions. The labour market in Russia today requires specialists in the following areas:

• In marketing and management, the main demand for vendors, marketers, logisticians and advertising specialists.
• In the field of information technology need system administrators, 1C programmers, specialists involved in the development of Internet sites (web-programming, web-design), search engine optimization specialists responsible for promoting sites, content managers responsible for the content of the site.
• In the economy requires credit experts, financial analysts, accountants.
• Professions in construction, hotel services and tourism have been and remain in demand, especially with the organization of the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014, the FIFA World Cup in 2018, and the development of the tourism and recreation industry in Russia.
• There is also a high demand for engineers, process engineers and technicians among technical professions.
• According to analysts, in five years one of the most popular professions will be ecologist, chemist and specialist in innovative technologies.

2. Ignorance of career choice rules
   A misperception of the nature of the activity leads to choices that do not correspond to the human inclinations, abilities and character traits. A profession can be chosen on the basis of the idea of it as romantic (geologist, actor), intelligent (doctor, engineer, scientist), fashionable (designer, lawyer, manager), monetary (broker, sailor, plastic surgeon) or on the basis of the fact that several generations of families have been engaged in it.

Rules for choosing a profession

• It is necessary to identify areas of activity in which there is a need today, to communicate with successful representatives of the profession, who have been engaged in it for many years. This will allow to see the perspective for the next 2-3 years.
• Find out which institutions provide training for these professions. It is better to choose public educational institutions with a name, collect the maximum number of reviews about them, read the training programs and see the teaching staff.
• Find the opportunity to practically try your hand in this environment, at least as a trainee or freelancer.
• Evaluate the real employment opportunity, see the latest research on job search sites or job vacancies in large organizations, as well as the demand for the profession in different regions of Russia and abroad.
• Do not give in to the indirect or direct influence of friends, because they come from their ideas about what you need, and it can be great to disperse with your. In addition, even close people tend to project their negative experiences. If Uncle Vasya went into trade in the 90s after he worked as an engineer, it is unlikely that he will adhere to the opinion that an engineer is a wonderful profession. It is important to remember that the attitude to the profession of any person is made up of many factors.

3) Ignorance of oneself – in terms of health, abilities, personal qualities of goals and tastes.
Often lawyers are sought by those who can not tolerate painstaking work, the psychologist is studied by absolutely emotionally deaf people, and geological expeditions dream of individuals with deep chronic diseases. So before choosing the future field of activity, listen to yourself and assess your capabilities.

The main thing to remember is that the work is attractive only when it meets the internal response, and thus meets our aptitudes. Often the activity can be liked by its results, the benefits it brings, recognition in society, social status and other benefits it provides. But a true propensity always means being disposed to the process of activity itself, when the work is not just a means to achieve some goals, but also becomes attractive and inspiring.