MOSCOW, 13 July 2023. Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) presents the findings of a survey about professions in Russia.
IT careers are the most prestigious jobs according to the Russians (31% vs 16% in 2021 and 5% in 2012). Healthcare jobs are also considered prestigious (30%). However, in 2018 doctors and lawyers were seen as more prestigious; today they are ranked 8th and 9th (7% and 4%, respectively; the shares have significantly decreased since 2006 (lawyers 28%; economists 20%)). Remarkably, healthcare workers had solid rankings well before the coronavirus pandemic, they strengthened their positions and headed the list during the pandemic (28% in 2018 vs. 31% in 2021).
Security bodies round out the top three most prestigious jobs (19%); over the five years this percentage has doubled (10% in 2018; 9% in 2021). The top five most prestigious careers also include education workers (16%) and blue-collar jobs (14%); the latter have hit a high over the entire period of measurement. Engineers’ prestige has also been growing gradually since 2006 (10%, which is a fivefold rise compared to 2006 (2%)).
Apart from lawyers and economists, a downward trend is typical of banking (bank workers, financial experts): today only 3% of the respondents consider these careers prestigious (vs 10% in 2006). This is also true for public workers (7% in 2006; 2% in 2023) and entrepreneurs (10% in 2006; 2% in 2023).
Long-term trend analysis shows that public views on occupational prestige are switching from finance-related jobs (bank employee, economist, businessman) towards professions related to long-term and complicated education process (doctors, IT workers, engineers). Military personnel, blue-collar jobs and doctors in the pandemic crisis have become increasingly important.
Employment income is another important determinant. The list of the most well-paid jobs is headed by IT careers (29%); the number of those who mention this profession has increased by 16 p.p. since 2021 and 14.5-fold since 2012 (2%).
The second place is held by military servants and security/law enforcement jobs (14%, + 9 p.p. compared to 2021), followed by healthcare workers (10%). The Russians also think that politicians, businessmen, bank workers and those who have managerial positions have well-paid jobs (9%, each). Lawyers and oil and gas industry workers were mentioned by 7% (each).
Obviously, occupational prestige and income are interrelated. As with prestige, lawyers (23% in 2006 vs 7% in 2023), entrepreneurs (20% in 2006 vs 9% in 2023) and economists (12% in 2006 vs 4% in 2023) have been losing ground in terms of earnings. Fewer Russians mention the job of politician (9% in 2023; 19% in 2021).
Even though the most prestigious and well-paid jobs in public mind are IT jobs, more and more Russians would like their children and grandchildren to be doctors (30%); this is followed by IT careers (19%); 10% mention law enforcement/security forces officers and EMERCOM. The top five includes engineers, education workers (9%, each) and litigators and economists (5%, each). Construction workers and oil industry workers share the same ranking (4%) but look more attractive than blue-collar jobs (3%), businessmen (2%), researchers (2%), and state workers (2%). Another 18% consider than children should decide on their career choices themselves (24% of the 18-24-year-olds).
VCIOM-Sputnik Russian nationwide telephone survey was conducted 1 July, 2023. A total of 1,600 Russians aged 18 and over took part in the survey. Survey method: telephone interviews, stratified random sample based on a complete list of mobile phone numbers in use in Russia. The data were weighted for socio-demographic characteristics. The margin of error at a 95% confidence level does not exceed 2.5%. In addition to sampling error, minor changes to the wording of questions and different circumstances arising during the fieldwork can introduce bias into the survey.
Key effectiveness indicators, survey of 1 July ne, 2023: cooperation rate (CR)* = 0.8289; minimum response rate (MRR)** = 0.0200; response rate (RR)*** = 0.1784. Calculations are based on corporate standard: https://profi.wciom.ru/principy_standarty/korporativnyj-standart-po-izmereniyu-rezultativnosti-oprosov-sputnik-vciom/
* CR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews and b) non-interviews with eligible respondents.
** MRR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews, b) interrupted interviews after successful screening and c) all the respondents where it is unknown whether they meet the selected criteria or not.
** RR is calculated in the same way as MRR, with the only difference thatthe number of respondents with unknown eligibility decreases proportional to the percentage of eligible cases in the total number of respondents with identified eligibility or non-eligibility.
What professions do you consider prestigious today? Give three examples open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents | |||||||
| 2006 | 2009 | 2012 | 2018 | 2021 | 2023 |
|
IT specialist, IT technologies | 7 | 6 | 5 | 12 | 16 | 31 |
|
Healthcare worker | 11 | 12 | 12 | 26 | 31 | 30 |
|
Military (including police, emergency, defense) | 3 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 19 |
|
Education worker | 4 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 19 | 16 |
|
Worker (locksmith, lathe operator, weldor, etc.) | 2 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 5 | 14 |
|
Engineer (in various areas) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 10 |
|
Construction worker | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
|
Legal specialist (lawyer, litigator, prosecutor) | 28 | 20 | 23 | 14 | 13 | 7 |
|
Politics / government bodies | >1 | >1 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 4 |
|
Economist, financial expert | 20 | 12 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 4 |
|
Service worker (cook, hairdresser, driver, etc.)* | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
|
Commercial worker | 2 | 2 |
| ||||
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, livestock specialist, etc.) | - | - | 1 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
|
Bank worker, financial expert | 10 | 7 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 3 |
|
Head, director | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
|
Manager | 7 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 |
|
Entrepreneur, businessman | 10 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 |
|
Gas and oil industry worker | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 |
|
State worker | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
|
Researcher/culture area | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
|
Artistic professions (artist, performer, designer, etc.) | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
|
Accountant | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
|
Other | 7 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 17 | 15 |
|
Don’t know | 24 | 27 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 23 |
|
*-Before 2021, “commercial worker” and “service worker” answer options were combined
What professions do you consider prestigious today? Give three examples open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents | |||||||||
| Total | Men | Women | Ages 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-59 | 60 + |
|
IT specialist, IT technologies | 31 | 28 | 34 | 32 | 41 | 39 | 28 | 22 |
|
Healthcare worker | 30 | 20 | 38 | 47 | 26 | 28 | 32 | 28 |
|
Military (including police, emergency, defense) | 19 | 19 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 19 | 18 | 17 |
|
Education worker | 16 | 9 | 23 | 19 | 17 | 10 | 14 | 22 |
|
Worker (locksmith, lathe operator, weldor, etc.) | 14 | 19 | 9 | 8 | 14 | 13 | 16 | 14 |
|
Engineer (in various areas) | 10 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 8 |
|
Construction worker | 8 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 10 |
|
Legal specialist (lawyer, litigator, prosecutor) | 7 | 5 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 5 |
|
Politics / government bodies | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
|
Economist, financial expert | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
|
Service worker (cook, hairdresser, driver, etc.)* | 4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
|
Commercial worker | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
|
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, livestock specialist, etc.) | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
|
Bank worker, financial expert | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 1 |
|
Head, director | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
|
Manager | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
|
Entrepreneur, businessman | 2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
|
Gas and oil industry worker | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
|
State worker | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
|
Researcher / culture area | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
|
Artistic professions (artist, performer, designer, etc.) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
|
Accountant | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
|
Other | 16 | 18 | 14 | 30 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 |
|
Don’t know | 23 | 26 | 20 | 13 | 23 | 17 | 22 | 29 |
|
In your opinion, what professions are well-paid today? Up to 3 answers are possible open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents | |||||||
| |||||||
| 2006 | 2009 | 2012 | 2018 | 2021 | 2023 |
|
IT technologies (IT, information protection, Internet) | 4 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 13 | 29 |
|
Military (including police, emergency, defense, etc.) | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 14 |
|
Healthcare worker | 5 | 7 | 6 | 12 | 10 | 10 |
|
Political sphere | - | - | - | 13 | 19 | 9 |
|
Entrepreneur / businessman | 20 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 9 |
|
Bank worker | 14 | 11 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 9 |
|
Manager/ head / director | 4 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 9 |
|
Legal worker (lawyer, litigator, prosecutor) | 23 | 14 | 17 | 15 | 11 | 7 |
|
Gas and oil industry / power industry / extraction of mineral resources | 3 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 7 |
|
Construction worker | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
|
State worker | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 6 |
|
Blue-collar jobs (weldor, locksmith, lathe operator, electrician, etc.) | 1 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 5 |
|
Commercial worker* | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
|
Service worker (beauty specialist, hairdresser, cook) | 2 | 1 |
| ||||
Economist / financial careers | 12 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 4 |
|
Engineer / industrial engineer (various industries) | - | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
|
Education worker | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
|
Internet-related jobs (blogger, etc.) | - | - | - | - | 3 | 3 |
|
Manager | 5 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
|
Transport (driver, pilot) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
|
Ore mining / extraction of mineral resources / steelworker / miner | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
|
Artistic professions (artist, performer, designer) | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
|
Accountant | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
|
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, farmer, mechanization expert) | - | - | - | 1 | 2 | 1 |
|
Other | 8 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 5 |
|
Don’t know | 24 | 28 | 19 | 25 | 26 | 26 |
|
*- Before 2021, “commercial worker” and “service worker” answer options were combined
In your opinion, what professions are well-paid today? Up to 3 answers are possible open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents | |||||||||
| Total | Men | Women | Ages 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-59 | 60 + |
|
IT technologies (IT, information protection, Internet) | 29 | 28 | 30 | 44 | 41 | 34 | 24 | 19 |
|
Military (including police, emergency, defense, etc.) | 14 | 15 | 13 | 8 | 25 | 14 | 8 | 6 |
|
Healthcare worker | 10 | 8 | 13 | 28 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 7 |
|
Political sphere | 9 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 5 |
|
Entrepreneur / businessman/private business | 9 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 8 |
|
Manager/ head / director | 9 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 9 | 13 | 5 |
|
Bank worker / bank emloyee | 9 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 14 | 12 |
|
Oil and gas workers | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
|
Litigator / lawyer / legal sphere | 7 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 8 |
|
Public service / government agencies / public officer | 6 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 4 |
|
Construction worker / Construction | 6 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
|
Commercial worker | 5 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 7 |
|
Blue-collar jobs | 5 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
|
Economist/ financial careers | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
|
Transport (driver, pilot) | 3 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
|
Internet careers (bloggers, streamers, etc) | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
|
Ore mining / extraction of mineral resources / smelter / miner | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
|
Engineer / designer | 3 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
|
Artistic professions (artists, performer, designer) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
|
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, farmer, mechanization expert) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
|
Service worker (beauty expert, hairdresser, cook) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
|
Other | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
|
Don’t know | 26 | 26 | 26 | 15 | 20 | 23 | 25 | 37 |
|
If you have/had children, grandchildren growing, what kind of profession or job would you like them to have? Up to 3 answers open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents | ||||||||
Total | Men | Women | Ages 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-59 | 60 + | |
Doctor / medical worker | 30 | 23 | 35 | 23 | 29 | 32 | 31 | 29 |
IT specialists / programmers / IT engineers / web designer | 19 | 20 | 18 | 11 | 28 | 20 | 22 | 12 |
Serviceman / military /police / law enforcement agencies /Rosgvardiya/ security agencies /emergency / firefighter/ rescue | 10 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 9 |
Engineer/ designer | 9 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 10 |
Education specialist / Teacher/education worker | 9 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
Economist/bank worker / financial expert/ accountant | 6 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 8 |
Litigator / lawyer | 6 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 |
Art / culture / artistic profession/ artist/designer/ architect/ musician/singer | 5 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 3 |
Construction worker / construction | 4 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
Oil and gas / gas worker / Oil industry worker/ power industry/ production/ industrial professions | 4 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
Blue-collar jobs/professions/locksmith /weldor | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Businessman / entrepreneur / PE / private business | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
Researcher / science | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Athlete / sports coach | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
State service / government / public officer | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Cook / culinary specialist / pastry man / baker | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
His/her choice | 18 | 20 | 16 | 24 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 19 |
Other | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
Don’t know | 18 | 18 | 19 | 23 | 18 | 19 | 14 | 20 |