Having high aspirations is an important factor in developing the potential of individuals, achieving their own goals and becoming productive and active citizens. In this context, the educational aspirations and choices that influence the attainments in the future professional career and the quality of life of individuals in general are of particular importance.

As many studies evidence, the educational aspirations are shaped and developed in response to many individual (e.g. academic self-efficacy, believes about education, sex)  and contextual determinants (e.g. family socio-economic status, parental education, parental support, school’s support) which can hinder or facilitate the development of high educational aspirations (Gorard et al., 2012; Gutman and Akerman, 2008; Schoon et al. 2007).

Despite significant attainments in education, women still belong to those social groups that encounter obstacles in achieving their educational aspirations, and experience a gap between their educational achievements and professional career that results in lower wages for women.

According to the statistics for the year 2020, 46% of women in EU obtained tertiary education compared to 36% of men. Although women have outperformed men in achieving tertiary education, across the EU they earn less per hour than men. In 2018, the gross hourly wages of women in the EU were on average 14.4% lower than those of men (Eurostat, 2020). Similarly, in Croatia there is also a gender gap between educational achievement and economical reward of women. Women make up 57% of higher education students while men make up 43%. At the same time, women's average monthly earnings were 89.9% of the monthly earnings of men (Croatian Bureau of Statistics, 2022).

Like statistical indicators, research results, including Croatian studies, also point to gender differences in educational aspirations, indicating a consistent trend of higher educational aspirations for girls than for boys (Schoon et al. 2007; Gutman and Akerman, 2008; Jugović, 2015; Šabić and Jokić, 2021). Educational aspiration is a complex construct, associated with various individual and contextual characteristics of students that influence relationship between gender and educational aspirations. Scoon et al. (2007) show that socially disadvantaged students tend to have lower educational aspirations than their socially privileged counterparts. Additionally, girls from families with traditional gender beliefs and stereotypes also tend to have lower educational aspirations. Research findings also suggest that aspirations are related to attitudes towards education and beliefs, especially to belief in an individual's own academic abilities. (Gutman and Akerman, 2008).

From a methodological point of view it is important to emphasize that these studies show that the complexity of various interdependent influences on educational aspirations requires an intersectional approach.

The aim of our research is to explore gender differences during the COVID-19 pandemic in upper secondary school students' aspirations to study abroad, i.e. to test if gender contributes to these aspirations when contextual variables (cultural capital, economic capital and residential status) and students’ individual  variables (GPE, self-efficacy for HE and estimates of the societal value of education in Croatia) are controlled for.

As we have mentioned, Croatian statistics and research indicate higher aspirations of girls to pursue tertiary education than boys, the influence of gender stereotypes on students study choices and higher aspirations of economically and culturally priviliged students to study abroad. Studying abroad proved to be an additional channel for the reproduction of a privileged status (Puzić et al., 2020).

Based on the mentioned, we hypothesize that higher educational aspirations of females will be also visible in proportion of girls who aspire to study abroad (in comparison to proportion of boys). We also assume that the aspiration to study abroad will be associated with higher cultural and economic capitals of boys and girls.

The research was conducted in 2021 within the project “National monitoring of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on educational system in Republic of Croatia” that was funded by the Croatian Ministry of science and education. The data were obtained from a Croatian nationally representative sample of 6350 students (58.3% females) from 77 upper secondary schools. The students attended either gymnasium or vocational programs that allowed them to enter higher education. Following the conceptualization of the educational aspiration in other studies (Šabić and Jokić, 2021; Ristić Dedić and Jokić, eds. 2019; Gorard et al., 2012; Quaglia, 1996), we defined it as an educational goal to achieve the desired educational achievements and experiences. The students’ questionnaire item measuring students’ aspirations for higher education (In the future, I want to pursue higher education; Yes, No, I don’t know) was used as a filter and further analyses were conducted on results of 5106 students (62.7 % females) who answered that they want to pursue higher education. The item measuring students’ aspirations for studying abroad was: If yes, which is the most desirable place for you to study?, Zagreb, Regional higher-education centre, Some other city in Croatia, Some other EU country, Some other country outside of EU; answers to this item were recoded in two categories: Croatia and abroad). In addition, students’ questionnaire contained the following items/scales: student’s expected GPA, upper secondary school program (gymnasium or vocational), gender, location (urban or rural), indicators of cultural capital (number of books at home, parental educational level), indicators of economic capital (parental employment status, student’s possession of his/her own room), students’ self-efficacy for HE (How confident are you that you will successfully…? Pass the State Matura exams, Enroll in the desired study program, Complete the desired study program; α=.86), and beliefs about societal value of education in the Croatian society (one item: Education is valued in Croatia; from 1 - I completely disagree to 4 - I completely agree). Cultural capital was dichotomised (0–low; 1–high [student has at least one HE parent and ≥25 books in his/her home]), as well as economic capital (0–low; 1–high [if both parents were employed and student has his/her own room]). We employed multilevel logistic regression modelling with a random intercept to take into account the hierarchical nature of the sample (i.e. students were nested in schools). Students’ aspirations for studying abroad served as the outcome variable.

In line with our hypothesis, the findings indicate a small but statistically significant difference during the COVID-19 pandemic in favor of females in aspirations to study abroad. This finding is compliant with other findings that women have higher educational aspirations than males (Schoon et al. 2007; Gutman and Akerman, 2008; Jugović, 2015; Šabić and Jokić, 2021). Students of urban residential status more often have aspirations for studying abroad than students from rural area. In addition, students of higher cultural capital also more often tend to have aspirations for studying abroad.These findings are not surprising and they are in line with other studies, including those in Croatia, which show that students from urban areas and with higher cultural capital tend to have higher educational aspirations and continue schooling at tertiary education (Gutman and Akerman, 2008; Ristić Dedić, 2019; Puzić et al. 2020). Students who give lower estimates of societal value of education in the Croatian society are also more keen to study abroad (Puzić et al. 2020). Somewhat surprisingly, students from gymnasium programs did not differ from students from vocational programs in aspirations for studying abroad. Student’s expected GPA also did not contribute to the model and neither did economic capital and self-efficacy for HE. Studies that use other measures of educational aspirations as outcome variables usually report school type, GPA, self-efficacy and economic capital as important predictors of student aspirations (e.g. Puzić et al. 2020; Šabić and Jokić, 2021). The analysis was repeated on a subsample of female students and the findings were similar to those reported on a whole sample. However, in the female subsample, economic capital was also a predictor of aspirations for studying abroad. On the other hand, in subsample of male students only urban residential status predicted the aspirations for studying abroad.

- Croatian Bureau of Statistics. (2022). Women and men in Croatia. https://podaci.dzs.hr/media/04pff1do/women_and_man_2022.pdf - Eurostat (2020) Gender statistics. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Gender_statistics&oldid=584079#Education - Gorard, S., B. H. See and P. Davies (2012) The Impact of Attitudes and Aspirations on Educational Attainment and Participation. Article January 2012, York: The Joseph Rowentree Foundation. - Gutman L. M. and R. Akerman (2008) Determinants of aspirations. London: Centre for Research on the the Wider Benefits of Learning. - Jugović, I. (2015) Rodna dimenzija odabira područja studija. U: B. Baranović (ur.) Koji učenici namjeravaju studirati? Pristup visokom obrazovanju. str. 165.-185. Zagreb: Institut za društvena istraživanja. - Puzić, S., J. Šabić, I. Odak (2020) To Study Abroad, in Zagreb or in Some Other Croatian City? Social Background, Rationality of Choice and Secondary School Students’ Aspirations Towards the Place of Studying. Croatian Sociological Review, Vol. 50, No. 2, 285–308. - Quaglia, R. J. and C. D. Cobb (1996) Toward a Theory of Student Aspirations. Journal of Research in Rural Education, Vol. 12, No.3, 127-132. - Ristić Dedić, Z. and Jokić B. (ur.) (2019) Što nakon srednje? Želje, planovi, i stavovi hrvatskih srednjoškolaca. Zagreb: Agencija za znanost I visoko obrazovanje. - Ristić Dedić, Z. (2019) Lokacijska perspektiva – Želje, planovi, stavovi učenika završnih razreda srednjih škola o prijelazu iz srednjeg u visoko obrazovanje. U: Z. Ristić Dedić and B. Jokić (ur.) Što nakon srednje? Želje, planovi, i stavovi hrvatskih srednjoškolaca. str. 84-103. Zagreb: Agencija za znanost I visoko obrazovanje. - Schoon, I., Martin, P. and Ross, A. (2007) Career transitions in times of social change. His and her story. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70(1):78-96 - Šabić, J. and B. Jokić (2021) Elementary school pupils’ aspirations for higher education: the role of status attainment, blocked opportunities and school context. Educational Studies, 2021, Vol. 47, No. 2, 200–216.