Sociodemographic Backgrounds and Career Decisions of Australian and New Zealand Dental Students

Factors Influencing the Selection of Dentistry as a Career Among Prospective Candidates: A Multicentre Cross-Sectional Study

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to analyse the impact of sociodemographic factors on dental school candidates' decision to pursue dentistry as their career of choice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Candidates shortlisted by three dental schools were invited to participate in a self-administered questionnaire study, featuring a validated instrument containing sociodemographic questions and 16 motivational items grouped into four domains: economic, professional, vocational and personal background reasons. The variations in motivational item scores across sociodemographic factors were assessed using the Mann-Whitney U test (age, sex, ethnicity, having relatives in the dental profession and dentistry as the first choice) and Kruskal-Wallis test (dental school and family income).

RESULTS

A total of 295 dental school candidates participated in the study (Universiti Teknologi MARA: 137; Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia: 99; MAHSA University: 59). Approximately 95% of participants identified dentistry as their primary career choice, with the vocational motivation of 'I like to help people' being the most prominent motivational factor. Dental school emerged as the critical factor significantly influencing three quarters of the motivational items. Sex, ethnicity and having relatives in the dental profession were the remaining factors significantly associated with variations in certain motivational items. Both dental school and ethnicity significantly affected four motivational domains (economic, professional, vocational and personal background).

CONCLUSION

This study provides an insightful overview of the sociodemographic factors that impact career decision-making among prospective dental students. The scores for most motivational items varied among shortlisted candidates in three dental schools. The findings hold implications for policy development in dentistry by universities and public policymakers.

Effect of morality or capitalist ideology in choosing dentistry as a career in Türkiye: a cross sectional study

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have provided important findings on the profession of dentistry and the motivators for choosing dentistry. This study has attempted to contribute to this accumulation by using a sociocultural perspective and interpreting the relationships among motivators from this perspective in a large Turkish sample. The aim of this study was to investigate what motivates dental students to choose dentistry as a career in Türkiye.

METHODS

First-year dental students from different dental schools were included in a descriptive cross-sectional study. The questionnaire included sections covering demographics, motivators and career satisfaction. A total of 919 students from 29 different state dental schools and four private dental schools participated. Descriptive statistics such as percentages, means and standard deviations were used to summarize the sociodemographic information and the distribution of the motivators. Factorial analysis was carried out for the structural status of the questionnaire items. The relationships between the motivators were analyzed using Pearson's correlation.

RESULTS

Among the 919 students, 64.2% were female, and 35.8% were male. Half of them chose dentistry after seeing their higher education institution's examination results, while the other half had already considered it a career during their preuniversity years. Communicating with people, artistic skills, and helping others were the main motivators for students to choose dentistry as a career in Türkiye, and students' overall career satisfaction was moderately high. The strongest correlations were between communication with people and benefits (r =.74), between communication with people and helping others (r =.71), between communication with people and artistic skills (r =.66), between artistic skills and benefits (r =.69), between artistic skills and helping others (r =.65), between dental experience and benefits (r =.51), between dental experience and helping others (r =.50), and between benefits and helping others (r =.71).

CONCLUSION

Helping others, artistic skills, communicating with people, and benefits were the most important factors motivating dental students to choose a career, and positive relationships were detected between these four factors. This information may help to develop more effective career guidance and mentorship strategies for dental students.

Sociodemographic profiles and career motivations of Australian dental students

PURPOSE

Prior studies explored factors influencing dental study choice, but shifts from BDSc to DDS degrees in some countries impact demographics and motivations, potentially affecting the dental workforce. The aim of this study was to establish Australian DDS and BOH students' sociodemographics and career motivations.

METHODS

Questionnaires conducted in mid-2019 assessed sociodemographic profiles and career motivations. Statistical analysis utilized descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test.

RESULTS

The overall response rate was 71.3%. DDS students had an average age of 25.2 years, while BOH students averaged 21.5 years. Most BOH (80.7%) and DDS students (52.0%) were female. They were mainly single, local, Australian citizens from metropolitan areas. Self-motivation ranked highest, particularly for DDS students (P < 0.05). Significant motivators included healthcare occupation, helping others, interesting career, and flexible hours (P < 0.05). DDS students were more motivated by flexible hours and independence (P < 0.05), while females emphasized a healthcare profession (P = 0.003). International students were motivated by being their own boss (P = 0.003), and private school graduates valued lifestyle within the profession (P = 0.049).

CONCLUSION

Despite sociodemographic changes, the main motivations for studying dentistry remain consistent. DDS students prioritized lifestyle factors such as time and remuneration over BOH students.

The Motivational Factors of Choosing Diagnostic Radiology as a Profession Among Saudi Radiography Students

PURPOSE

To identify factors influencing Saudi students to choose radiography as their academic major and future career field.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

This study involved quantitative (online questionnaire) and qualitative (semi-structured interview) approaches. An online questionnaire was distributed among (n = 308) students. The questionnaire contained 30 questions covering the following three domains: economy, vocational and personal. A total of 25 individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with purposive sampling of radiography students in seven universities (public and private) across the western region of Saudi Arabia. Interview responses were coded, and main themes were extracted based on Miles and Huberman's framework.

RESULTS

The findings demonstrated that radiography was the first option as profession for 44% of the study participants. Several factors that study participants considered important were in the realm of patient care, helping patients, radiographer-patient relations, science-based profession, and the desire to work in the healthcare system. A few participants (14%) reported that they are planning to change their profession to another medical speciality. Four themes were identified from the interviews: 1) Profession decision-making, 2) changing career", 3) difficulties and challenges, and 4) recommended radiography as a profession.

CONCLUSION

The results of the study support the need to bridge the gap between high school, universities, and employment through a collaborative network to assist students in exploring their career path by providing sufficient information and experience.

Impact of public health and higher education policies on the profile of final-year Brazilian dental students: Challenges and future developments

INTRODUCTION

Brazil has experienced transformations in higher education and health services, including launching more inclusive public policies focused on these two areas.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the profile of final-year dental students from a Brazilian public university from 2010 to 2019, accompanied by changes in public health and higher education policies.

METHODS

A prospective observacional study was carried out with final-year dental students. A self-applicable semi-structured questionnaire was applied.

RESULT

Six-hundred and seventy-seven students participated, of which 71.5% were women, 72.9% aged between 21 and 25 years, 96.2% single, and 96.4% were without children. Over ten years, it was possible to identify trends in the profile explained by implementing public policies toward more inclusive access to Brazilian higher education by socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals. Students who completed the course between 2018 and 2019 did not have the state capital city (the wealthiest area) as their origin city and had lower parental education and income levels than dental students graduating between 2010 and 2011. Moreover, working as a primary care dentist in the Brazilian National Health System was considered a professional possibility by 61.4% of the students, and has gained prominence significantly over time, ranging from 21.1% in 2010 to 72.9% in 2019 (p < .05).

CONCLUSION

Over the study period, concomitantly to advances in public health and higher education policies in Brazil, more diverse access to public dental education was observed, allowing students from low socioeconomic positions to take the education. Changes have also impacted the students' perspectives regarding the need for postgraduate training and a career in public health dentistry. However, these trends need to be consolidated, and public policies continued and strengthened.

The workforce outcomes of dental graduates from a metropolitan school 'Rural Clinical Placement Program' versus a 'Rural Clinical School'

INTRODUCTION

This study compares the workplace decisions from University of Sydney (USYD) dental graduates who participated in a 1-month voluntary Rural Clinical Placement Program (RCPP), USYD graduates who did not participate in the RCPP (non-RCPP), and with graduates who qualified from a dental Rural Clinical School (RCS) at Charles Sturt University (CSU).

METHODOLOGY

From mid-2015, USYD students who graduated between 2009 and 2013, and CSU graduates from 2013 to 2014, were requested to complete a telephone interview related to employment choices. For USYD, 135 interviews were completed (63% of contactable graduates) and for CSU, 39 interviews (68%). Mixed methods were applied to analyse the data.

RESULTS

For USYD, 33% of RCPP participants were working rurally compared with 18% of the non-RCPP, whilst 54% of CSU graduates were working rurally. For USYD, the self-reported influence of the RCPP on the graduates' employment decisions was a significant predictor of rural employment. For CSU, country of birth and employment status were weakly associated with rural employment. Across the three cohorts, key employment factors were as follows: job availability, family, personal relationships, good mentorship, clinical training, partner factor and lifestyle. In addition, both the RCPP and CSU graduates showed greater interest and awareness of rural employment than the non-RCPP.

CONCLUSION

The CSU RCS and USYD RCPP are leading to positive rural employment outcomes, and it is clear that the provision of a rural experience is influencing graduates to work rurally. Further investigation of the CSU program is required to fully assess its impact and to provide longitudinal workforce information.

Country and gender differences in the motivation of dental students-An international comparison

PURPOSE

The objective of this study, conducted in Germany, Finland and Turkey, was to identify whether motivations to study dentistry varied by country, gender or year of study.

METHODS

The multicentre pilot study was conducted in English language in 2014. Participants (n = 469 dental students) were either in the first or last year of study. The response rate was 91%.

RESULTS

The sample comprised 63% females and 37% males, reflecting the common gender distribution in dental education. A total of 236 first year students (50.3%) and 233 final year students (49.7%) took part in the study. The participants were aged 21-25 years and of 15 different nationalities, mostly from Turkey, Germany and Finland. Considering who motivated them most to become a dentist, the most common answer was "self-motivated" (49.5%). 23.4% of the students stated having been motivated by a "family member or friend, who is a dentist," while 24.3% said they had been motivated by a "family member or friend, who is not a dentist." -Very few students (2.8%) recorded having been motivated by a "high school or college counsellor." Motivations for choosing dentistry as a career included "ability to help people," "self-employment," "income potential," "working with hands" and "status and prestige," all of which were rated as highly important. "Time management" and "career variety" were rated as moderately important. Significant statistical differences were observed by country and gender. For the German students, a dental relative was significantly more often relevant than for the Finnish and Turkish students, who were more often influenced by family members or friends not working in the dental field. "Time management" seemed to be significantly more important to female than to male students.

CONCLUSION

In line with a feminisation of the workforce in dentistry, a well-structured working environment and well-thought-out time management may play an increased role in future work force planning (Gender dentistry: International vergleichende Studie zu Karrierewahl und Spezialisierungswünschen von Zahnmedizinstudenten. Ulm: Universität Ulm).

Can motivations for studying dentistry inform us about gender and BME differences in dental academic careers?

There are various motivators that prompt people to study dentistry but there is evidence that the salience of each varies according to gender and black and minority ethnic (BME) group. Given the current focus on inequality within the science, technology, engineering, medicine and mathematics (STEMM) academic disciplines where dentistry sits, it is important to understand the relevance of different motivators to different social groups if inequality is to be overcome. We carried out a survey of dental students from 11 out of the 18 dental schools in the UK to find out what prompted them to study dentistry. Our findings showed that most people make a personal choice to study dentistry and follow a patient-focused career while the prospect of an academic career was important for less than half of our sample. Differences according to gender and BME group were apparent but did not follow these trends. In order to continue to improve the diversity within dental academia dental schools should consider the different preferences of the workforce and work to broaden its potential.

Cultural competence skills in a dental curriculum: A review

This study aimed to analyse and evaluate the extent of transcultural content in the current curricula of the Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS), Bachelor of Oral Health (BOH) and Master of Nursing Science (MNSc) courses at the University of Melbourne.

METHODS

The study was conducted in two phases: a quantitative review and assessment of the current DDS, BOH and MNSc curricula at the University of Melbourne, and interviews with various staff from the University of Melbourne who were responsible for curriculum development for these courses.

RESULTS

Staff from the DDS, BOH and MNSc courses concurred on the importance of transcultural skills, the necessity of covering cultural issues relevant to the main ethnic groups in Australia, obstacles faced and the lack of evaluation methods for cultural competency. The nursing curriculum had the most extensive coverage of transcultural content throughout both years of the course (total 71 formal contact hours; mean 36 formal contact hours per year). In contrast, modules on transcultural skills were limited to the first two of the 3-year BOH course (54 hours; 18 hours) and only the first of the 4-year dental curriculum (40 hours; 10 hours).

CONCLUSION

The DDS course showed less time devoted to formal teaching of these concepts compared to the nursing and BOH courses despite showing a noticeable improvement from a previous assessment conducted in 2006. It is hoped that the DDS course continues to further increase the transcultural content and find ways to incorporate more transcultural education.

Evidence of the effect of rural background on rural practise in Australian dental practitioners: Does gender play a role?

BACKGROUND

People residing outside the capital cities have poorer oral health than their city counterparts. Health workforce shortages and stability issues can have negative health effects on rural populations. There has been an increasing proportion of women entering the dental practitioner workforce in Australia. This study investigated whether dental practitioners who have a rural background are more likely to work in a rural area than those who do not have a rural background; and whether the gender of dental practitioners plays a role.

METHODS

A self-administered questionnaire was sent to a sample of dental practitioners via their professional dental associations. Practice location was assigned as either 'urban' or 'rural' using the Australian Standard Geographical Classification - Remoteness Area categories and measured with demographic characteristics of the respondents. Prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated using Poisson regression with robust standard errors.

RESULTS

Participants with a rural background were more than twice as likely (male PR = 2.23, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.79-6.26; female PR = 2.82, 95% CI = 1.35-5.87) to practise in a rural area than those with an urban background.

CONCLUSIONS

Dental practitioners with rural backgrounds were more than twice as likely to work in a rural practice as their urban counterparts.

Factor analysis of a motivation questionnaire adapted to predoctoral French dental students

Background/purpose

The motivations of dental students for their studies have largely been investigated in numerous countries using psychometric questionnaires. This is not the case in France since validated tools are still lacking. The aim of the present work was dedicated to the psychometric validation of a motivation questionnaire adapted for predoctoral French dental students.

Material and methods

The design corresponded to a monocentric study realized at the dental school of Nantes University, France. A 14-item questionnaire was translated into French and adapted for dental studies. It was autoadministered by the students between March 2014 and May 2014. Exploratory and confirmatory factorial analyses were used to investigate the psychometric properties of the French version.

Results

The rate of reply was 88.7% with a sex allocation consisting of 44.4% men and 55.6% women. The internal reliability and the item-sampling adequacy of the questionnaire reached acceptance thresholds. Exploratory and confirmatory factorial analyses established a four-factor structure with good internal reliability. The factors consisted in “altruism,” “status and incomes,” “scientific curiosity,” and “educational advantages.” Factors correlated well with the overall questionnaire. The overall motivation score did not differ between male and female students, although “altruism” was best scored by female students while “status and incomes” obtained a higher score in the population of male students. Both male and female students displayed similar “scientific curiosity” and “educational advantages” scorings.

Conclusion

Our data establish that the French motivation questionnaire has good psychometric properties and that it is relevant for further studies.

Nepalese dental hygiene and dental students' career choice motivation and plans after graduation: a descriptive cross-sectional comparison

BACKGROUND

This is the first study of its kind to provide data regarding the self-reported career choice motivation and intentions after graduation of dental and dental hygiene students in Nepal. The findings of this study can be used to inform future oral health workforce planning in Nepal.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey of dentistry and dental hygiene students attending a large accredited dental college in Kathmandu, Nepal. Quantitative data were analysed using IBM® SPSS® 22. The respondents were given the opportunity to provide clarifying comments to some of the questions.

RESULTS

Two hundred questionnaires were distributed, and 171 students completed the anonymous survey (response rate 86 %). Working in health care and serving the community were the most important initial motives for career choice, with significantly more dentistry students selecting their degree course because of the possibility to work flexible working hours (p < .001) compared to dental hygiene students. A majority of the students expressed concern about finding a suitable job (58 %) after graduation. Almost a quarter (23 %) reported intent to seek a job immediately after graduation, while 46 % plan further studies. Dentistry students were more likely to report planning further studies (p = .007) compared to the dental hygiene students. Dental hygiene students express a higher interest in going abroad (p = .011) following graduation. Only 10 % of all students plan to live or work in rural areas after study. Most common preferred locations to live after graduation are urban (33 %) or abroad (38 %). Data suggest a preference to combine working in a hospital with working in their own practice (44 %) while interest in solely working in their own practice is low (<2 %).

CONCLUSION

Many students, though enthusiastic about their profession and expressing the ambition to serve the community, fear unemployment or envision better chances abroad. Most of the students in this study expressed a preference to live in an urban area after graduation. Findings indicate that strong measures are required to incentivise students to consider rural work.

Students' motivation to study dentistry in Malaysia: an analysis using confirmatory factor analysis

INTRODUCTION

Malaysia has experienced a significant expansion of dental schools over the past decade. Research into students' motivation may inform recruitment and retention of the future dental workforce. The objectives of this study were to explore students' motivation to study dentistry and whether that motivation varied by students' and school characteristics.

METHODS

All 530 final-year students in 11 dental schools (6 public and 5 private) in Malaysia were invited to participate at the end of 2013. The self-administered questionnaire, developed at King's College London, collected information on students' motivation to study dentistry and demographic background. Responses on students' motivation were collected using five-point ordinal scales. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to evaluate the underlying structure of students' motivation to study dentistry. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to compare factor scores for overall motivation and sub-domains by students' and school characteristics.

RESULTS

Three hundred and fifty-six final-year students in eight schools (all public and two private) participated in the survey, representing an 83% response rate for these schools and 67% of all final-year students nationally. The majority of participants were 24 years old (47%), female (70%), Malay (56%) and from middle-income families (41%) and public schools (78%). CFA supported a model with five first-order factors (professional job, healthcare and people, academic, careers advising and family and friends) which were linked to a single second-order factor representing overall students' motivation. Academic factors and healthcare and people had the highest standardized factor loadings (0.90 and 0.71, respectively), suggesting they were the main motivation to study dentistry. MANOVA showed that students from private schools had higher scores for healthcare and people than those in public schools whereas Malay students had lower scores for family and friends than those from minority ethnic groups. No differences were found by age, sex, family income and school type.

CONCLUSION

Using CFA, this study shows that academic factors were the main motivation to study dentistry in this group of Malaysian students. There were also variations in students' motivation by students' ethnicity and school sector but not by other factors.

Career motivations, perceptions of the future of dentistry and preferred dental specialties among saudi dental students

AIM

The purpose of this study was to determine the career motivations, perceptions of the future of dentistry and preferred postgraduate specialties of Saudi dental students.

METHODS

A pretested, self-administered, 16-item questionnaire was distributed to first- through fifth-year dental students at King Saud University in Saudi Arabia. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and the level of significance was set at 5%.

RESULTS

Of the 530 potential participants, 329 students (198 male and 131 female respondents) completed the questionnaire. High professional status (71.4%), a secure career (67.8%), a high income (78.1%), flexible working hours (54.4%), a wide range of career options after graduation (59.3%), opportunities for self-employment (69.3%) and good job opportunities abroad (65.3%) were endorsed to a great/considerable extent by the respondents. "It takes time to establish a practice" (62.3%), "Postgraduate education is a necessity" (72.4%) and "The increasing number of dental institutions is a threat to the profession" (59.3%) were endorsed to a great or considerable extent by the respondents. The most popular specialty among the male students was oral maxillofacial surgery (20.1%) and among female students was operative dentistry (23.4%).

CONCLUSION

The career motivations of this group of dental students seemed to relate to socioeconomic aspects of dentistry and perceptions of the future of dentistry seemed to relate to the need for postgraduate education.

Australian/New Zealand Bachelor of Oral Health students: sociodemographics and career decisions

This article describes the sociodemographic profile and factors affecting career decisions of Bachelor of Oral Health (BOH) students in Australia and New Zealand. Data were collected during the 2009 and 2011 academic years via online. A total of 271 students participated. The majority were female (87.8%), single (74.5%) and of Anglo-Saxon background (59.4%), and the average age was 23.7 years. The majority indicated that their fathers had at least secondary school education. The majority (52.8%) decided to study BOH after high school, and of those who commence after high school, 53.7% worked as a dental assistant/auxiliary. Career selection was self-motivated (70.2%) and a career to 'care for and help other people' (59.6%). Most respondents wished to work in a city (59.8%), in both the public and the private sectors (47.2%). This study represents a comprehensive assessment of BOH student profile in Australia and New Zealand. Findings indicate an overall different BOH student profile compared with other oral health profession students in Australia. A significant proportion had previous employment as a dental auxiliary staff and an increasing number of male students. Findings are relevant to educators, recruitment administrators and policy makers in the way the BOH profession is presented as a career option.

Study motives, career choices and interest in paediatric dentistry among final year dental students in Nigeria

BACKGROUND

Students' motives for studying Dentistry have been a subject of interest for years because of the potential for understanding the psychological makeup and subsequent job satisfaction for the dentist. It is also useful in identifying expectations of the profession. This study therefore tried to identify study motives and career preferences of dental students especially with respect to the practice of paediatric dentistry.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire. The final year students in six dental schools in Nigeria were required to fill the questionnaire. Students were asked to rank their motives and career preferences on a Likert like scale with points ranging from 0-5 where 0 represented a factor that had no influence on their decision and 5 represented a very influential factor. The underlying dimensions for study motives, career preference, impression about and motive for interest in the practice of paediatric dentistry were identified using factor analysis.

RESULTS

One hundred and seventy nine of 223 students (80.3%) participated in this study. Motives for the practice of dentistry included characteristics of the profession, altruism and intellectual challenges, existence of artistic theme in dentistry and parent's recommendation. Overall, 67.1% of respondents indicated interest in postgraduate studies and 50.8% were interested in paediatric dentistry practice. The main motives for showing interest in the practice of paediatric dentistry were 'personal interest, professional interest and interest of significant others in children', and 'family influence'. Significantly more males than females were interested in the practice of paediatric dentistry though the motives for interest in the practice of paediatric dentistry did not differ significantly by sex or age.

CONCLUSION

The non-significant sex difference in the motives for interest in the practice of paediatric dentistry is a possible reflection of changes in strong cultural themes in the motives for career choices in Nigeria.

The effect of a change in selection procedures on students' motivation to study dentistry

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to determine whether changes in student selection criteria at The University of Adelaide effected a change in motivation and influencing factors to study dentistry by comparing cohorts.

METHODS

Online questionnaire completed by first-year dentistry students at The University of Adelaide between 1993-1996 and 1997-2005.

RESULTS

All 666 students completed the questionnaire with 647 suitable for analysis. The likelihood of students being motivated for a career in dentistry because it 'fits with family' was greater for the 1997-2005 cohort (OR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.14-2.49, p < 0.01) than it was for 1993-1996 enrollees, whereas 'status' became less important (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.30-0.73, p < 0.01). Being influenced by a dentist (OR = 2.41, 95% CI = 1.63-3.55, p < 0.001) or a dental employee (OR = 3.19, 95% CI = 0.90-4.85, p < 0.001) was much greater for the 1997-2005 group than it was for the 1993-1996 cohort. Where students came from, parents' level of education and gender were not significant in the multivariate analysis of factors associated with motivation and influences of students' career choice.

CONCLUSIONS

Changes to the selection procedure were associated with increased emphasis on lifestyle factors and the dental profession, but not with the desire to help people or the importance of the work itself in students' decision to study dentistry.

Career choice and future design of dental students in China and Japan

The purpose of this study was to compare career choice and future plans of dental students in China and Japan. Information was derived from a self-answered questionnaire. Significant differences were detected for eight items between the two countries. Regarding motivation towards career choice, 41% of Japanese students indicated positive motives related to helping others, achieving self-worth and health-care related interests, whereas Chinese students indicated that their choice was mainly for financial and prestige reasons, and for 32% of them, dentistry was a passive choice. More Chinese dental students (74%) wanted further education compared with Japanese students (22%). The majority of Japanese students (56.9%) planned to work as general dentists. Conversely, Chinese students were more likely to specialise (50%). More than 50% of Japanese students wanted to work in dental offices, but the majority of Chinese students (65%) preferred university hospital. We found it is strange that nearly one-fourth of the Chinese students did not want to be a clinical dentist mainly because of the poor health-care environment. This study provides a description of the perspectives of Japanese and Chinese dental students and enables a better understanding of career choices and future course design issues.

Short and long-term career plans of final year dental students in the United Arab Emirates

Background

New dental schools have been established to train dentists in many parts of the world. This study examines the future dental workforce from the first dental school in the United Arab Emirates [UAE]; the aim of this study was to explore the short and long-term career aspirations of the final year dental students in the UAE in relation to their demography.

Method

Final year dental students of the Ajman University’s College of Dentistry (n=87) were invited to participate in a self-completion questionnaire survey. Descriptive analysis, chi-square tests, and binary logistic regression analysis were carried out on career aspirations using SPSS v20.

Results

Eighty-two percent of students (n=71) responded, the majority of whom were female (65%; n=46). Ethnicity was reported as: ‘other Arab’ (61%; n=43), ‘Emirati’ (17%, n=12), and ‘Other’ (21%, n=15). In the short-term, 41% (n=29) expressed a desire to work in government training centres, with Emirati students significantly more likely to do so (p=0.002). ‘Financial stability’ (80%; n=57) and ‘gaining professional experience’ (76%; n=54) emerged as the most important influences on their short-term career plans. The vast majority of students wished to specialise in dentistry (92%; n=65) in the longer term; logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of specialising in the most popular specialties of Orthodontics and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery were less for the ‘Other’ ethnic group when compared with ‘Emirati’ students (0.26; 95% CI 0.068-0.989; p=0.04). Almost three-quarters of the students overall (72%; n=51) intended to work full-time. ‘High income/financial security’ (97%; n=69), ‘standard of living’ (97%; n=69), ‘work/life balance’ (94%; n=67), and ‘professional fulfilment’ (87%; n=62) were reported by the students as the most influential items affecting their long-term professional career choices.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that students aspire to make a long-term contribution to the profession and there is a high level of interest in specialisation with a desire to achieve financial stability and quality of life.

Self-reported cultural skills from dental students and graduates from Melbourne, Australia

OBJECTIVE

To explore Melbourne Dental School students and graduates' self-assessed levels of competence and skill regarding cultural issues which emerge in dental treatment, and their perceptions of the dental curriculum in addressing socio-cultural issues.

METHODS

Information was derived from a 59-item questionnaire consisting of three parts: socio-demographic; self-assessed level of culture competency within the clinical encounter; and cultural aspects in the dental curriculum. Data was collected from undergraduate dental students enrolled in the fourth year of 2006 and 2007 and fifth year of 2006 and from dentists who graduated in 2002 and 2003.

RESULTS

A total of 133 students and 37 dentists took part in the survey. Response rates were 68.9% among students and 92.6% among dentists. The majority (students: 90.2%; graduates: 62.1%) indicated 'Very often'/'Always' treating patients from different cultural backgrounds. Distribution of competencies showed that participants felt fairly competent in communicating and establishing rapport, but less competent in dealing with patients' cultural practices, and patients' family involvement. The majority (students: 72.1%; graduates: 59.7%) perceived the coverage of socio-cultural aspects in the course as not adequate. Around 40% of participants indicated that inclusion of socio-cultural awareness in the dental curriculum was important or very important.

CONCLUSION

Although there were some significant differences in participants' reports, they generally self-reported having good competency and skill in providing care to patients from different cultural backgrounds. Further exploration of these issues would enhance the future dental workforce's quality of care, professionalism and capacity for cultural competence.

Student diversity and implications for clinical competency development amongst domestic and international speech-language pathology students

International students graduating from speech-language pathology university courses must achieve the same minimum competency standards as domestic students. This study aimed to collect descriptive information about the number, origin, and placement performance of international students as well as perceptions of the performance of international students on placement. University Clinical Education Coordinators (CECs), who manage clinical placements in eight undergraduate and six graduate entry programs across the 10 participating universities in Australia and New Zealand completed a survey about 3455 international and domestic speech-language pathology students. Survey responses were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively with non-parametric statistics and thematic analysis. Results indicated that international students came from a variety of countries, but with a regional focus on the countries of Central and Southern Asia. Although domestic students were noted to experience significantly less placement failure, fewer supplementary placements, and reduced additional placement support than international students, the effect size of these relationships was consistently small and therefore weak. CECs rated international students as more frequently experiencing difficulties with communication competencies on placement. However, CECs qualitative comments revealed that culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students may experience more difficulties with speech-language pathology competency development than international students. Students' CALD status should be included in future investigations of factors influencing speech-language pathology competency development.

Transcultural skills content in a dental curriculum: a comparative study

BACKGROUND

Australia has the highest proportion of immigrants in the world (24% of the population is overseas-born, compared to 22% in New Zealand, 19% in Canada and 12% in the USA). In this context, dental students have become increasingly diverse in a milieu where patients are derived from increasingly diverse backgrounds.

AIM

The study aims to analyse the degree to which transcultural and communication skills content is currently embedded in the medical, physiotherapy and dental curricula at a major Australian university.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

  Undergraduate dental, medical and physiotherapy curricula were compared and critically assessed. Researchers considered the amount of transcultural and communication skills content, the number of formal contact hours for each course and the number of teaching staff involved. In addition, 21 interviews were conducted with staff at the three schools, who were involved in the curriculum development process.

RESULTS

The medical and physiotherapy curricula had an explicit focus on transcultural and communication skills as a major and continuing element, delivered by teaching staff from a wide variety of academic and professional backgrounds. In contrast, the dental course showed an under-representation of transcultural and communication skills content which was taught by a limited number of staff from the School of Dental Science.

CONCLUSIONS

In marked contrast to medical and physiotherapy curricula, transcultural and communication skills content had a low formal profile in the dental curriculum. A curriculum review process may be a positive step towards the development of a new training curriculum giving higher priority to transcultural and communication skills to support more effective workforce development.

Identifying student profiles and their impact on academic performance in a Brazilian undergraduate student sample

The recognition of the student profile provides strategic information for planning educational policies in the university environment. The aims of this study were to identify natural segmentation of freshman undergraduate dental students based on demographic, socioeconomic and educational variables, and to subsequently investigate their impact on academic performance of Brazilian undergraduate students. Cluster analysis (two-step algorithm) was used to segment students who entered dental school in the time period from 1999 to 2001 (n=158) into groups based on responses to a questionnaire completed by students at the time of the admission examination. Clustering analysis revealed three natural groups. Age, the parents' level of education, and performance on the first admission test were the most important variables for cluster segmentation. Cluster 1 (n=42; 26.6%) was characterized by female students with higher socioeconomic status and better previous educational indicators. Cluster 2 (n=62; 39.2%) represented disadvantaged socioeconomic profiles, with a predominance of females and older students. Cluster 3 (n=54; 34.2%) showed similar socioeconomic characteristics to cluster 1, except for male prevalence, higher age, and experiencing difficulty in the admission test. Clusters' academic performance was satisfactory in both overall course and course groups (grade point average of at least 7.0), with average ranging from 7.89 (SD=0.44) to 8.13 (SD=0.31) and 7.37 (SD=0.75) to 8.31(SD=0.26), respectively. Our findings provide encouraging evidence for the current context of equality of access to education and reveal the importance of financial support to maximize successful educational experiences of socioeconomically disadvantaged dental students.

Orthodontic education programs: an international comparison of students' views and experiences

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this study was to identify the demographic characteristics of students completing certificate programs in orthodontics, and the curriculum and financial characteristics of orthodontic programs in the English-speaking world.

METHODS

An online survey was used to question orthodontic students studying in the 93 programs worldwide in countries where the first language is English. The questionnaire was built by using the online survey tool www.surveymonkey.com, and the students were predominantly contacted directly via e-mail.

RESULTS

Of the 301 respondents (an estimated response rate of 33%), the majority were men, had an average age of 29.8 years, and were mostly from programs in the United States. The mean program durations were 31.0 months in the United States and 37.1 months in the Commonwealth, with mean total patient loads of 84 and 106, respectively. Various treatment modalities were used in both groups. The mean annual tuition fee was considerably higher in the United States. The overall mean debt at graduation was $118,200, and the mean expected income 5 years after graduation was $283,200. Private practice was the most popular career path (90.3%), with fewer than a third of the respondents stating that they would consider an academic career.

CONCLUSIONS

This study indicates that the demographic characteristics of orthodontic students are similar to those most recently reported, with the proportion of female students continuing to increase. The numbers of transitional dentition patients and total patient case loads are increasing, and students are being exposed to an increasingly wide range of treatment techniques. A continuing increase in tuition fees was reported, along with increased levels of debt at graduation, and fewer students intend to have an academic career.

Study motives and career choices of Iranian dental students

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the study motives and career choices of Iranian senior dental students in relation to their background factors.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

During the spring term 2005, a questionnaire survey was administered to 327 senior dental students in seven randomly selected state dental schools in Iran. The questionnaire requested information on age, gender, parents' employment in dentistry, previous education and employment in dental hygiene, study motives, and career choices. Statistical analyses were made using independent sample t test, factor analysis, and binary logistic regression model.

RESULTS

Based on the factor analysis, which explained 73% of the total variance, five motive dimensions were identified: altruism and intellectual challenges, characteristics of the profession, social status and security, other person's recommendation, and failure to be admitted to other study programmes. The mean for the 'characteristics of the profession' dimension was lower among the students with at least one parent employed in dentistry (p = 0.03). The 'altruism and intellectual challenges' dimension was reported to be more influential by the students with background in dental hygiene (32 students) compared to the others (p < 0.001). Engaging in postgraduate studies was the first career preference of 189 (70%) of the respondents. Those with a background in dental hygiene were less inclined to enter postgraduate courses (p < 0.001), but more eager to be employed in either the public or the private sector (p < 0.001), and to enter the community oral health and research field (p < 0.001) than the others.

CONCLUSION

Personal characteristics and motives of the students play a major role in shaping their career preferences.

Dentistry - a professional contained career in healthcare. A qualitative study of Vocational Dental Practitioners' professional expectations

BACKGROUND

New graduates in the UK presently spend one year in training as Vocational Dental Practitioners (VDPs) in preparation for primary dental care. There is a growing recognition that the emerging workforce has very different professional expectations to those of earlier generations, with implications for the profession, patients and the performance of health systems. The objectives of this study were to investigate why VDPs' in England and Wales perceive they chose dentistry as a professional career; how they perceive their vision has changed and the implications for their professional career plans, both short- and longterm.

METHODS

Purposive sampling of schemes was undertaken to include urban, rural and metropolitan schemes, schemes in areas with and without dental schools and geographic coverage across England and Wales. All VDPs in these schemes were initiated to participate in this qualitative study using focus groups. A topic guide was utilised to standardise data collection. Informants' views were recorded on tape and in field notes. Data were transcribed and analysed using Framework Methodology.

RESULTS

A total of 99 VDPs participated in the 10 focus groups. Their choice of dentistry as a professional career was motivated by multiple categories of influence: 'academic', 'healthcare', 'lifestyle', the influence of 'family', 'friends', 'careers advice' and 'work experience'. Consideration of the features of the 'professional job' appears to have been key to their choice of dentistry and the 'active rejection of medicine' as an alternative career.Entry into the profession was proving a challenging process for some but not all VDPs. Informants perceived that their vision had been moderated as a result of 'personal student debt', 'national workforce initiatives', 'limitations on clinical practice' and the 'cost of additional training'.Short term goals focused around 'recovery from the past' and 'preparation for the future'. Longterm goals covered the spectrum of opportunities within dentistry. Factors influencing VDPs longterm career plans fell into six main categories: professional, personal, financial, political, social and cultural.

CONCLUSION

VDPs chose dentistry because they perceived that it provides a financially lucrative, contained career in healthcare, with professional status, job security and the opportunity to work flexibly. They perceive that their vision is challenged by changes affecting education and the healthcare system. Longterm professional expectations were closely linked with their personal lives and support a vision of a favourable work/life balance.

The Association Between Parental Socioeconomic Status (SES) and Medical Students’ Personal and Professional Development

Introduction: In order to commit to their mission and placement requirements, medical education policy-makers are required to understand the background and character of students in order to admit, cultivate and support them efficiently and effectively. Materials and Methods: This study sample consisted of 408 homogeneous medical students with the same level of education, occupation, school and societal environment. They differed mainly in their family background. Therefore, this study used part of a multidimensional “student portfolio system” database to assess the correlation between family status (indexed by parental education and occupation) and medical students’ mental health status and characters. The controls were a group of 181 non-medical students in another university. Results: The parents of the medical students were from a higher socioeconomic status (SES) than the parents of those in the control group. This showed the heritability of genetic and environment conditions as well as the socioeconomic forces at play in medical education. Students’ personal and professional development were associated with their parents’ SES. The mother’s SES was associated with the student’s selfreported stress, mental disturbances, attitude towards life, personality, health, discipline, internationalisation and professionalism. The fathers’ SES did not show a statistically significant association with the above stress, physical and mental health factors, but showed an association with some of the personality factors. The greater the educational difference between both parents, the more stress, hopelessness and pessimism the student manifested. Conclusions: Medical educators need to be aware that socioeconomic factors have meaningful patterns of association with students’ mental and physical health, and their characters relating to personal and professional development. Low maternal SES negatively influences medical students’ personal and professional development, suggesting that medical education policy-makers need to initiate support mechanisms for those with latent vulnerability. Key words: Risk factors, Stress