Educational Aspirations of Migrant Parents and the Relationship With Educational Success

Adding to the strand of research which shows that when taking into account accumulated disadvantages, descendants from migrant families succeed to a higher amount in education than natives, this paper analyses if and how parental educational aspirations act as a protective factor for educational success. Based on the Swiss longitudinal TREE data (Transition from Education to Employment, n= 7,971) of the second cohort we answer this question using a multinomial logistic regression analysis. Our results show that some migrant groups have higher parental aspirations and that these aspirations serve as a pushing factor for several second-generation groups to take up higher education at upper secondary level. To have a closer look at the underlying mechanisms we assess the definition of success by taking into account qualitative data chosen by a criterial-based sample of TREE respondents. The inductive definition of success, based on a content analysis with n=119 young adults and their parents from migrant and Swiss families will add to the existing theoretical reflection on the narrow definition of success and its interplay with parental aspirations.