Celebrity, athlete and game designer: What today’s Hong Kong primary school pupils want to become

Hong Kong primary school children dream of becoming celebrities, athletes or game designers instead of going into traditional areas like teaching, law and medicine, according to a survey carried out by a youth group.

Yet many did not think their parents would approve of their choices, said researchers, who called on parents to communicate more with their children.

Out of 1,152 primary five and six pupils from 12 schools surveyed by the Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association between April and June last year, the most popular occupation picked by more than 10 per cent of respondents was either to become a movie star or a singer. This was followed by athlete and game designer.

The study also found that some 15 children wanted to become “YouTubers” and other types of social media celebrity. Teachers, doctors and lawyers ranked fourth, fifth and ninth respectively.

Akina Sze Sin-li, who is in charge of the association’s family wellness centre, said parents should open themselves to new career trends and develop diverse interests in their children instead of imposing traditional career choices.

The most important thing for children, Sze said, was to let them set their own goals and fight for them. “Whatever dream jobs children have may not be their actual jobs in future, but at least they had a dream – to be confident in themselves and dare to try,” she said.