Canadians, Americans and Britons wanted to become teachers when they were kids

People in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom tended to day-dream about becoming teachers when they were children, a new poll conducted by Angus Reid Strategies has found.

The online survey of representative national samples in each one of the three countries listed eight occupations and asked respondents whether they ever fantasized about holding any of those jobs. Being a teacher was the top choice for Canadians (28%), Americans (25%) and Britons (18%).

Being a doctor is second on the list of fantasy professions for young Canadians (25%), followed by becoming a professional athlete (22%) and a police officer (21%).

In the United States, doctors are also listed as the second most fantasized profession (22%), followed by athletes (20%), artists (18%) and police officers (16%). In the United Kingdom, doctors, athletes and police officers are tied in second place (all at 15%).

Strikingly, less than 10 per cent of respondents wanted to serve as their country’s head of government when they were children. Nine per cent of Canadians and five per cent of Britons fantasized about working as prime ministers, while eight per cent of Americans day-dreamed about becoming president.