Analysis on Students' Career Preparation in One Korean Medical School: Based on the Relationship and Trend Between Career Maturity and Specialty Indecision

BACKGROUND

For medical school students, specialty choice after graduation significantly impacts their future doctor life. Several Korean medical schools have made efforts to prepare career development programs. However, career support programs based on the systematic analysis of medical school students' first to the final year are still lacking. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the students' career preparation of one medical school in Korea using the Career Maturity Inventory (CMI) and Specialty Indecision Scale (SIS) and to explore the relationship between CMI and SIS variables.

METHODS

From December 2020 to July 2021, we conducted an online survey of 600 students in years 1 to 4 at Seoul National University College of Medicine. We analyzed the differences between the years of the students through one-way analysis of variance of the CMI and SIS and the relationship between the two instruments by correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 198 students completed the survey. The average scores of the CMI variables tended to increase as the year of study went up, and the confidence score of the 1st year students was significantly lower than that of the 2nd and 4th year students. Although there was almost no consistent decrease by year in the SIS variables, 3rd and 4th year students showed significantly lower readiness scores than 1st year students. Additionally, we found that the CMI variables mostly had a negative effect on the SIS variables.

CONCLUSION

There is an increasing tendency for career maturity by year of study in Korean medical school students. However, looking at the SIS results, the career concerns vary among the students. Therefore, medical schools can effectively use the SIS to identify the career concerns of students.

The relationship between locus of control and hope in adolescents: The mediating role of career and talent development self-efficacy

Adolescence is a period that plays a crucial role in career development. Understanding the psychological structures associated with a career can help to better understand adolescents’ career development. The aim of this study was to examine the mediating role of career and talent development self-efficacy in the relationship between adolescents’ locus of control and the construct of children’s hope. The study group was composed of 354 adolescents including 170 females and 184 males. The mean age of participants was 14.3 years. Structural equation modelling was used to investigate the mediating role of career and talent development self-efficacy in the relationship between locus of control and children's hope. It was concluded that career and talent development self-efficacy had a mediating role in the relationship between locus of control and children’s hope. Mental health professionals and educators who carry out locus of control or hope-based interventions are recommended to pay attention to the mediating role of self-efficacy.

Career Preparedness Among Adolescents: A Review of Key Components and Directions for Future Research

Adolescents and students are faced with the developmental task of becoming prepared for a career and master future career transitions. Existing research has investigated a range of concepts relating to career preparedness, including predictors and outcomes. However, this body of work is fragmented as a number of different conceptualizations and measurements related to career preparedness exist. Thus, the goal of this review is to provide an overview of the different concepts that have been used to describe and measure career preparedness. Based on a comprehensive review of empirical articles on maturity, readiness, adaptability, preparedness, and preparation, we propose an organizing framework of the diverse attitudes, knowledge and competencies, and behaviors required for career preparedness. We also review the empirical research on predictors and outcomes of career preparedness. We close by identifying issues in the conceptualization and measurement of different constructs and provide suggestions for future research, and implications for theory and practice.

The Mediation Effects of Career Exploration on the Relationship Between Trait Anxiety and Career Indecision

This study investigated trait anxiety, career exploration behaviors, and career indecision. Using longitudinal data, career exploration behavior was examined as a mediator in the relationship between trait anxiety and career indecision. Five hundred and one Korean college students completed online questionnaires at three different time points with a 6-month interval. Results showed significant mediation effects of career exploration behaviors. Specifically, a higher level of trait anxiety was associated with a lower level of initial career exploration, yet anxiety increased career exploration behaviors over time. Additionally, an increase in career exploration behaviors predicted a decrease in career indecision. The results suggest that the role of trait anxiety in career exploration and decision-making may change over time. While trait anxiety is related to less exploration and more difficulty in decision-making from a cross-sectional perspective, it may facilitate career exploration and, ultimately, career decision-making from a longitudinal perspective.

Causal Relationship Between Career Indecision and Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy

This study surved 166 students when they were in Grade 8 of high school and then again when they were in Grade 10, using measures of career indecision and career decision-making self-efficacy. Consistent with social-cognitive theories, the authors hypothesized that changes in self-efficacy over time would be causally associated with changes in career indecision over time. Using latent variable analyses, the authors estimated a two-wave, longitudinal, cross-lagged panel design and find that contrary to expectations, changes in career decision-making self-efficacy did not result in changes in career indecision, despite significant contemporaneous associations at both times. Theoretical and applied implications are highlighted.

Predicting Two Components of Career Maturity in School Based Adolescents

Three hundred and sixty-seven secondary school students across five year levels (8-12) were assessed for levels of career maturity (attitude and knowledge), work commitment, work value, career decidedness (indecision and certainty), career decision-making self-efficacy and self-esteem, and indicated their age, gender, socioeconomic status, school achievement and work experience. Using two multiple regression analyses, the predictor variables were able to account for 52% of the variance of career maturity attitude, and account for 41% of the variance of career maturity knowledge. Self-efficacy, age, career decidedness (certainty) and work commitment were the main predictors of career maturity attitude. Age, gender, career decidedness (certainty), work commitment and career decidedness (indecision) were the main predictors of career maturity knowledge. Results demonstrated the importance of examining two aspects of career maturity (attitude and knowledge), and were discussed in the context of Super's (1957, 1990) theory of career development.

The impact of a career intervention programme on South African Grade 11 learners’ career decision-making self-efficacy

There have been increasing calls for career development interventions that take the local context into account while providing a firm theoretical basis to engage with the career processes and attributes of individuals coming from diverse backgrounds. The goal of this study was to determine the effect of a career intervention programme derived from Social Cognitive Career Theory on the career decision-making self-efficacy of Grade 11 learners at three schools with diverse socio-economic backgrounds in the Eastern Cape. Using a quasi-experimental design, measurements were taken at a pretest, post-test and a follow-up occasion 8 weeks after the completion of the programme in a sample of 222 learners using the Career Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Scale. The study demonstrated that the career decision-making self-efficacy of the intervention group improved significantly subsequent to the career intervention programme underscoring the value of the career intervention programme. Although the current study demonstrated a medium effect on the intervention group by the end of the intervention, the time period of the programme may not have been long enough to sustain the impact 8 weeks after the completion of the programme. This may suggest that a longer intervention period or intermittent reinforcement such as booster sessions may be needed to sustain the effect. The study confirms that a group-based career development programme, designed specifically for the South African context, can serve as an essential tool to help high school learners from different socio-economic backgrounds enhance their career maturity expressed in terms of their career decision-making self-efficacy.

The Impact of Work Quality and Quantity on the Development of Career Decision Status

A study is reported that investigates the relationship between career decision status, quantity and quality of work experience obtained by university students. Career decision status is the term used to capture an individual's level of decidedness and comfort with their career decisions and the reasons underlying this state (Jones & Lohmann, 1998). Measures of career decision status were collected from students enrolled in the third year of a Computer Science and Engineering degree over two phases: at the beginning of their third year (Time I); and at the beginning of fourth year (Time II). In between phases, some students completed paid intensive training placements as part of their course requirements, others gained non-degree relevant work experience and others did not work at all. Information was collected on the quantity of work undertaken and quality of work in terms of satisfaction, met expectations and relevance to course of study. Decidedness about career choice was a function of satisfaction and met expectations at work, rather than the number of hours worked. Decisiveness was a function of relevance of work to university degree, rather than the number of hours worked.

Strategies for Coping with Career Indecision

The goal of the present research was to test the convergent and divergent validity of the Strategies for Coping with Career Indecision (SCCI) model and questionnaire, which comprises three main coping styles— Productive coping, Support-seeking, and Nonproductive coping—using three samples of young adults deliberating about their career choice. Study 1 tested the association between the SCCI and career decision-making profiles, using a sample of 390 young adults. Study 2 tested the relations between the SCCI and emotional and personality-related career decision-making difficulties, using a sample of 454 young adults. Finally, Study 3 tested the associations between the SCCI and career decision self-efficacy as well as the five dimensions of the Big Five Inventory, using a sample of 451 young adults. All three studies also tested the SCCI’s incremental validity by assessing its ability to predict individuals’ stages in the career decision-making process over and above the other measures. The results supported the convergent and divergent validity and partially supported the incremental validity of the SCCI. The theoretical and counseling implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented.

Relationship of Advisory Mentoring to MBA Career Maturity

This study investigates the influences of gender and work experiences on career maturity, as well as the relationship between advisory mentoring and career maturity. Analytical results from 528 full-time MBA students are summarized as follows: (a) gender exerts significant differences in advisory mentoring functions (instrumental and career-related functions) but not in career maturity, (b) work experience is significantly related to planfulness, (c) psychosocial function is a strong predictor of planfulness and independence, whereas career-related function is a strong predictor of both information gathering and involvement. The results are interpreted and implications discussed in terms of advisory mentoring behavior and career counseling of MBA education.

Factors that Influence Career Decision-Making among Elite Athletes

A common belief about elite athletes is that they invest so much effort into the pursuit of their athletic careers that they fail to develop good career decision-making skills. Recent findings challenge that belief. The present study investigated career decision-making difficulties among 117 elite Australian athletes. Participants completed adapted versions of the Career Decision-Making Difficulties Questionnaire, the Athlete Identity Measurement Scale, the Career Decision-Making Self-efficacy Short Form, and the Work Locus of Control Scale. These elite athletes showed no evidence of career decision-making difficulties. Combinations of this set of variables accounted for 35% of the variance in decision status and 20% of the variance in career decision-making difficulties. Career decision-making self-efficacy was a major contributor in both instances. Internal locus of control was also identified as a desirable characteristic in the context of career decision-making. The implications of these findings are discussed.

What can be Learned from the Roller Coaster Journeys of Young People Making Ultimately Successful Transitions beyond School?

This project investigated the interrelationships between family expectations and young people's post-school plans. All of the participants were from financially disadvantaged families. The research used interviews to understand these young people's perspectives of their transition experiences: the ways in which young people's school experiences impacted on their post-school pathways; how the young people weighed up costs and benefits in their decision-making; and exploration of the barriers and enablers encountered by the young people in their transition journeys. The findings endorsed the significant role played by families in young people's career decision-making and revealed some areas where such families might be provided with greater support.