1.1 Introduction
Career is the totality of work which a person performs in his life time. It is a way of earning a living as well as a meaningful progression on a person's working life. It involves not only systematic education for initial occupation, but also a systematic occupational experience in which each occupation is considered as technical and social preparations for the individuals. The business world in particular has been generally changed as a result of technological breakthrough. Technology has almost affected all facets of life as far as human existence is concerned (Bracken, 2004). The technological advancement according to him, has made for greater effectiveness and efficiency in the performance of various office activities.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Secretarial profession refers to professional area, which provides the services of communication and record with focus on the office functions giving, receiving, recording, analyzing and storing information. The professional is the secretary who is functionally described as the executive assistant, the personal assistant, the managers manager [The manager of the executive] or the private secretary. For the past few years, there has been an ongoing argument on the career choice among secretarial administration students. Career is the totality of work which a person performs in his life time. It is a way of earning a living as well as a meaningful progression on a person's working life. It involves not only systematic education for initial occupation, but also a systematic occupational experience in which each occupation is considered as technical and social preparations for the individuals. The preparation of a person on the acquisition of secretarial skill is in the right step towards employer ability. The executive secretaryship is an important aspect of office organization at it relates to division of duties and responsibilities. It has various names depending on the establishment employing the secretary such as, personal secretaryship, confidential secretaryship, company secretaryship, administrative secretaryship etc.
Ohakwe, Idih and Chukwumezie (2000) states that a secretary is an assistant to the executive in performing secretarial duties such as taking dictation from the executive in important matters in shorthand and transcribing the dictated notes on the typewriter, handling personal and important mails most of which are confidential. The executive secretaryship is an administration officer who is responsible to the chief executive in the daily running of affairs of an organization. The secretary is equally in charge of all administrative matters, which include supervision of both senior and junior officers of the organization, all the managing directors function and full responsibilities for the secretarial and administrative duties required of a personal assistant. Therefore, secretaries are not managers as such, but they are indispensable to the management as no manager can function without secretarial services.
In many organizations, the secretary is provided with a position in the establishment even though he / she is normally attached to the top, middle to lower level management. In such establishments, close the secretary have a command a clearly defined responsibility which often includes supervision of clerical and secretarial staff under him in other establishments. The secretary may be merely attached to a superior officer but without an establishment of her own, she sits outside of her executive officer receiving his visitor taking notes and transcribing them. The on-going argument on the career choice as to whether confidential secretaryship is better suited for men or women. Those who favour the woman claim that there are aspects of the secretarial work that are perceived to be outside the competence of male, while those who favour males claims, as well that there are aspects of the secretarial work that are outside the competence of females. The employers of labour are found to show their preferences to either male or female secretarial students depending their demand of work.
Secretaryship is a difficult and challenging profession. It is also entails rigorous training for both sexes. It can be more challenging profession for the women who combines secretary go into secretaryship are expected to rigorous training which spans from National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) and first degree. The job of the secretary whether male or female is similar and would include receiving and giving management communication, storing management communication, safeguarding management communication and analyzing management communication etc.
Career abound in secretaryship in other words, those who train as secretaries, whatever the sex are faced with many careers on graduation such careers include the executive secretaryship earlier talked about, but many feels that executive secretaryship is better suited for the females. Other Secretaries careers include Bilingual Secretaryship, Medical Secretaryship, Legal Secretaryship, Hausard Secretaryship, Court Reporting etc including careers in education is better suited for the male. There have been some related studies, Emeribe (1999) conducted a study on employers preference of male and female secretaries and found among that the preference of employers for male secretaries. However, it does not appear to have been any study that focused on the career choice of male and female in secretaryship, hence this study.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Gender Attribute and Career Choice of Office Technology and Management in Tertiary Institution in Nigeria.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Secretaryship offers many options to the men or woman going into it. In other words, once a person has qualified by obtaining the Higher National Diploma (HND) she can select any career within the professions. Job prospects, job satisfaction, job prestige, job involvement are some of the factors that determine choice of career. Given the opportunity which of the options available in secretarial career will appeal more to both males and females. The problem of the study, therefore, is to generate empirical data on the career preferences of male and females in secretaryship.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to identify the Gender Attribute and Career Choice of Office Technology and Management in Tertiary Institution in Nigeria. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To determine whether gender is a factor in the choice of types of employer
- To determine the gender preference for the popular Office Technology and Management career in Tertiary Institution options
- To determine whether these is parental influence in choice of career among male and female secretarial students.
- To determine whether marital circumstances Career Choice of Office Technology and Management in Tertiary Institution
- To determine whether remuneration, prestige job satisfaction, etc is a major factor in the choice of secretarial career among men and women.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- Which employers do secretaries like to work for on graduation?
- What is the gender preference for the popular Office Technology and Management career in Tertiary Institution?
- How dose parental influence affects choice of Office Technology and Management career in Tertiary Institution?
- How does marriage Career Choice of Office Technology and Management in Tertiary Institution?
- Which of the factors affecting the choice of secretarial career among men and women?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
- H0: There is no significant factor affecting the choice of secretarial career among men and women
- H1: There is a significant factor affecting the choice of secretarial career among men and women
1.7 Significance of Study
This study is hoped to be beneficial to many people in several ways. This study is highly educative as it services as a basis for environment of knowledge in secretarial education. It also helps the students by providing information that could guide both male and female students in their choice of career. The future researchers will also from this research as it serve as a basis for further research because no one have close it.
This study will be of immense benefit to researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The study focuses on the Gender Attribute and Career Choice of Office Technology and Management in Tertiary Institution in Nigeria.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
1.10 Definition of Terms
Gender: This is the classification by which nouns and pronouns (and after accompanying modifiers) are grouped and inflected or changes in forms in relation to sex or their lack of it.
Differences: This is the state of holding an opinion unlike that of others, quality fact of being difficult.
Career: These progress through life, development and progress of part and principal way of making a living.
Choice: This is the act of the voluntary power of selecting or separating from two or more things the determination of the mind in one thing to another executive. That is the person or group of persons in a business or commercial organization, with administrative or managerial power.
