What qualities would you choose in a son- or daughter-in-law? Assuming that you have a reasonable relationship with your offspring, you would probably want them to be caring and good with children. You might also want them to have a nice line in discipline.

In other words: the ideal son- or daughter-in-law would be a teacher.

A YouGov poll of 1,756 adults asked them to imagine that their daughter was about to be married, and to select their top three preferences for her partner’s profession. They were then asked to do the same for a son.

One in four - 26 per cent - of those questioned said that they would like their prospective daughter-in-law to be a teacher. As a desirable profession for a daughter-in-law, it was beaten only by medicine, which was chosen by 35 per cent of those questioned.

It was deemed more desirable for a daughter-in-law to be a teacher than a lawyer, nurse, architect or entrepreneur.

Parents of the bride had somewhat different priorities. Doctor, lawyer and architect were the top professions chosen for their ideal son-in-law, perhaps revealing that sexism, like confetti, is still sprinkled liberally over a 21st-century wedding day.

Despite this, though, 15 per cent of those questioned said that they would like their future son-in-law to be a teacher, making it the fourth most popular choice.

Sexism was apparent in other areas, too: 16 per cent wanted a daughter-in-law who was a nurse, whereas only 5 per cent wanted a son-in-law who might actually be of practical use in sickness and in health.

And 3 per cent said that they wanted a model as a daughter-in-law, while no one wanted a model son-in-law.   

MPs, actors and journalists were unpopular choices for both men and women.