This article addresses the paradox that, despite achieving educational participation exceeding their male peers, young women see fewer returns for this investment in the labour market. We argue that this paradox is obscured by youth transitions frameworks that assume a close, linear relationship between education and work. We draw on Bourdieu’s concept of field to highlight the distinctive logics (particularly the ‘time economy’) that shape different engagements by young people in education and work. This approach reveals the enduring power of the time structure of paid work in Australia to dominate key dimensions of life, including caring work, placing many women in a situation where they feel they must ‘choose’ career or parenthood. Our analysis of the intersections and disjunctions of these different fields highlights the challenges for young women’s transitions from education to work, and highlights the need for a relational framework to critically analyse the relationship between these fields.
Young Women in Search for Autonomy. New Generation of Female Professionals Entering the Labour Market