Pre-university students in Spain are losing interest in entrepreneurship

Teenagers prefer to work for a private sector company as their first choice

The preferences of young pre-university students have changed significantly in the last year. This is clear from the 3rd Young Business Talents Report, prepared by Praxis MMT, ESIC and Nivea in collaboration with the University of Granada, to identify teenager’s trends and attitudes.

The most striking information refers to their interest in setting up their own businesses. In last year’s report, this alternative was chosen by 41.40% of respondents, however, this time, that figure has fallen to 36.09%; in other words a 12.83% decrease. In contrast, there has been an increase in the number of young people who consider that working for a private sector company is the best choice for their future careers. The only idea that remains the same, at 25%, is the desire to become public servants.

Almost 9,000 young people aged 15 to 21 who were studying 4th year of the ESO (Obligatory Secondary Education), and 1st and 2nd years at High School, as well as middle and upper level Vocational Training took part in the study. Of this sample, however, 27% of pre-university students do not have a clear idea of what they want to do in the professional arena.

The differences between autonomous communities are significant. Navarra (41%) and Murcia (40%) are the regions in which more teens prefer to set up a business project. At the other extreme, we have Cantabria (22%) and Asturias (32%).

On the other hand, Asturias (46%), Catalonia and the Basque Country (45%) are the territories where there is a greater preference to work for a company, preferably a multinational, such as Microsoft, Coca Cola or Inditex, compared with other regions, such as Murcia, Extremadura and Galicia.

Finding a job in the public administrations seems to attract people from Cantabria (45%), Extremadura (40%) and Murcia (33%) especially. At the back of this classification, we have La Rioja, Catalonia, and the Basque Country, with 8% in the former case and 15% in the latter two.

The Young Business Talents Report points out that, based on these results, Spain is behind other countries in terms of the commitment young people display to entrepreneurship. Within Europe, the Greeks, at 48.09%, display the greatest desire to create a company, followed by Portugal (46.47%). Outside European, Mexico, displays the highest entrepreneurship figures at 65.30%.