Parental involvement encompasses activities that support a child’s development and academic progress. Within this framework, home-based and school-based involvement can be distinguished; however, the literature also identifies a third dimension: academic socialization. This study hypothesizes that higher levels of parental involvement during secondary school positively influence achievement in higher education, despite the fact that most existing research does not address long-term effects. Using a large-scale dataset spanning five countries, we investigate the relationships between maternal and paternal involvement in secondary school and subsequent academic achievement in higher education. Our findings indicate that discussing the importance of learning – an indicator of academic socialization – is perceived as part of mothers’ everyday activities factor, while for fathers, it is associated with value transmission and emotional support factor. Notably, both factors were found to have a positive effect on higher education achievement. Based on these results, public education systems should implement programs that emphasize the long-term significance of learning for both parents and children.