Information deficiencies in career choice: design and validation of an instrument.

Abstract

This document analyzes the information gaps in the university career choice of first-year students in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas. A quantitative, descriptive-correlational, and non-experimental approach was used, applying an instrument to 113 students. The five-point Likert scale included 15 items distributed across four constructs: Parental Support, Vocational Certainty, Job Certainty, and Vocational Guidance. The results show high parental support and adequate job certainty; however, Vocational Certainty presented the lowest scores, indicating insecurity about continuing their chosen field of study. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the validity of the instrument (59.90% of variance explained; alpha > 0.700). It is concluded that it is necessary to strengthen vocational guidance programs focused on career exploration.