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Abstract
This paper seeks to understand what types of individuals want to work for the government and what motivates them. In particular, we explore the role of (mis)beliefs: with imperfect information, individuals often hold inaccurate beliefs about the government, which in turn drive their decision whether to seek government employment. Conducting an online survey experiment among college students in China, we examine how their beliefs about certain aspects of the government, including financial rewards and prospect of career advancement, affect their interest in pursuing government employment. We find that misbeliefs are widespread; when provided with accurate information, respondents adjust their beliefs to align more closely with reality. Belief updates regarding financial rewards have a significant effect on career preference: respondents become more (less) interested in government employment after they adjust their beliefs about financial rewards upward (downward). In contrast, belief updates regarding career advancement have only vague effects. We further explore how individual traits interplay with incomplete information.