Career confusion: The 10 jobs most likely to be misunderstood by your parents

Big data, the Internet of Things, social media marketing – look back a decade and these concepts weren’t around.

Things have changed these days, however, and it’s leaving the British workforce somewhat exasperated when they try explaining their untraditional roles to their parents, according to LinkedIn.

Indeed, the career-centric network found that one in three parents don’t have any idea what their children do to make a living.

Titles such as user interface designer, data scientist and social media manager were among the jobs most likely to leave parents scratching their heads. In fact, more than two-thirds of parents said they weren’t confident they could accurately define the purpose of the positions.

The list has been compiled by LinkedIn to mark its Bring in Your Parents Day concept, that calls on professionals across the country to give their parents an insight into their working life.

This is in a bid to make less of a gap between the new generation of workers and those before them, as 52 per cent of British parents said they’re not familiar with the working exploits of their offspring.

The top ten misunderstood jobs are:

1. UI Designer – 86 per cent

2. Data scientist 76 per cent

3. Social media manager 71 per cent

4. Actuary – 68 per cent

5. Sub editor – 66 per cent

6. Sociologist – 62 per cent

7. Radio producer – 58 per cent

8. PR manager – 57 per cent

9. Investment banker – 55 per cent

10. Fashion designer – 51 per cent

Read more surreal lists:

• 10 offbeat business apps to support entrepreneurial pursuits
• The 20 coolest brands in the UK
• The top ten cities for business leaders to win deals – and love

Seemingly it’s better to opt for more traditional careers in order to prevent endless explanations about the job. Teacher, firefighter and architect had the lowest percentages for parents not knowing the function of the jobs, at 20 per cent, 28 per cent and 28 per cent respectively.

Some of the businesses embracing Bring in Your Parents Day include, Samsung, Mars, Philips and Doro.

“Parents can be a valuable part of their child’s career, and an important source of advice and guidance. Our research shows that almost half of parents have an opinion on their child’s work situation but often hold back because they don’t fully understand what they do for a living,” said Darain Faraz, PR manager, LinkedIn.

“Bring in Your Parents Day was born with one goal in mind – to bring employees and their parents together, arming parents with the knowledge they need to open up those potentially important conversations around the world of work.”

By Zen Terrelonge

Share this story