The Influence of Students' Choice of Career on Their Performance in Chemistry Education in University of Jos, Nigeria

Abstract

This study determined the influence of career choice on students' performance in chemistry education in the University of Jos, Nigeria. Descriptive design was used with a student sample of fifty eight (58) drawn from the 200, 300 and 400 levels. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire and students' cumulative grade point average (CGPA) scores were used as instruments. Three research questions were answered using mean responses while three hypotheses were tested using t-test for independent samples at 0.05 confidence level. The results show that majority of the respondents did not choose to study chemistry education as their career. It also shows that even though many of them are happy studying chemistry education, very few would like to be teachers after graduation. There was a significant difference in the mean performances of chemistry education students who chose chemistry education and those who chose other courses. The students studying their course of choice performed better than those studying the course given them. The study recommended the need for educational administrators, academic planners and admission officers to carefully admit students according to their programme of choice and the need for teachers to emphasize the importance of chemistry education as a career to create interest in the students.