The popular professional networking site LinkedIn recently conducted a survey of more than 8,000 workers across Canada, and the company asked these professionals how their current jobs relate to their childhood aspirations. While not every individual ended up being an astronaut or famous celebrity like they once wanted to be, a large number are doing something related to their dream job.

About 30 per cent of Canadian citizens have a career that either is close to their childhood dream job. For men, this mostly consists of engineering positions, which was the top dream job of those surveyed. It was closely followed by doctor, professional athlete and pilot, each of which garnered more than 6 per cent of votes of participants.

Women had similar results, but their top childhood job was a teacher, which took 17 per cent of the vote. Rounding out the top three dream professions were doctors and writers.

"The dream jobs we aspire to as children are a window into our passions and talents," said Nicole Williams, a LinkedIn career expert. "Identifying and understanding those passions are key to improving our performance and enjoyment of the jobs we currently do, even if they aren't specific to the careers we dreamed of as kids."

Of the individuals who ended up in a totally different field than they once thought, more than 43 per cent said they simply became interested in a different career path. They also may have been drawn to other fields because of the benefits - financial or otherwise. For example, one quality that many Canadians look for in their dream job is the ability to work from home or have flexible schedules, a trait often found in jobs where individuals can be their own boss or those careers that are not restricted to a typical business day, such as jobs in the medical field.

No matter what an individual's childhood dream was, they can find rewarding careers that appeal to their different passions. Taking courses in college is a good way to get started in a new field, and also discover if an aspiring worker has a passion for the job. Those who want to be nurses can get started by exploring the different possibilities and programs available to them.

Students who are interested in starting careers in the medical field can enroll in healthcare courses at CDI College. To find out more information, fill out the form on the right.