Profiles of Rural Youth: A Decade of Migration and Social Mobility. Research Report 178, Development and Public Affairs

The early career experiences of a group of young people from a sparsely populated out-migration area of Michigan were studied. In 1957, all the juniors and seniors enrolled in the county's 6 school districts responded to questionnaires which sought to explore several aspects of their situations near the end of high school. Factors examined included the students' opinions of the community, possible expectations to migrate, plans for further training or education, and expectations for entry into the work force. Students who participated in the original study were relocated in 1968, and information was sought on their experience in the intervening period. The restudy questionnaire covered events such as marriage and family formation, further education or training completed, military service, migration and residence, and occupational experiences. Findings from the 1968 study were that a majority of the subjects did move away from their home communities, that a little over one-half of the males and a few females served in the armed forces, that the subjects were dispersed throughout the occupational structure, that occupational achievement was related to residence, that many of the young people had married during the decade, and that most thought that it was necessary for young people to leave the area after high school to pursue desirable career objectives. (PS)