The vast majority of job seekers across all age groups and geographical locations would study something different if they had a second chance at school or college. 

In some age categories, as little as 9.6 percent of those looking for a new job are content with the choices they made at school – a sad indictment of how the careers advice received at a young age might be failing those at a time when they need it most. The most alarming statistic is that 78.8 percent of 16-21 year olds would ‘maybe’ or definitely study something else if given the choice, in many cases just months after finishing their A-Levels, NVQs or degrees.

There is some good news, however. Whilst many would change their selections if they could, the same respondents are also open to the idea of re-training, either now or in the future. With only 11.5 percent saying that they would not consider going back to education, there is certainly a healthy demand for knowledge within the UK’s workforce. Where does this leave Britain? Lee Biggins, Managing Director of CV-Library thinks: ‘The majority of us get things wrong, so support for students and children in making those all-important choices clearly needs to improve. Do we really know what path our career will take at such a young age? Companies could probably be doing more to subsidise re-training and could definitely get involved earlier to help identify and support candidates at an early age where experience is everything. For those who replied yes, re-training is a popular and sensible option, but if we got things right first time we might find a very different outcome.’