Abstract
BackgroundDental graduates are joining a profession experiencing changes in systems of care, funding and skill mix. Research into the motivation and expectations of the emerging workforce is vital to inform professional and policy decisions. The objective of this research was to investigate final year dental students' perceived motivation for their choice of career in relation to sex, ethnicity and mode of entry.MethodsSelf-administered questionnaire survey of all final year dental students at King's College London. Data were entered into SPSS; statistical analysis included Chi Squared tests for linear association, multiple regression, factor analysis and logistic regression.ResultsA response of 90% (n = 126) was achieved. The majority were aged 23 years (59%), female (58%) and Asian (70%). One in 10 were mature students. Eighty per cent identified 11 or more 'important' or 'very important' influences, the most common of which were related to features of the job: 'regular working hours' (91%), 'degree leading to recognised job' (90%) and 'job security' (90%). There were significant differences in important influences by sex (males > females: 'able to run own business'; females > males: 'a desire to work with people'), ethnic group (Asians > white: 'wish to provide public service', 'influence of friends', 'desire to work in healthcare', having 'tried an alternative career/course' and 'work experience') and mode of entry (mature > early entry: 'a desire to work with people'). Multivariate analysis suggested 61% of the variation in influences is explained by five factors: the 'professional job' (31%), 'healthcare-people' (11%), 'academic-scientific' (8%), 'careers-advising' (6%), and 'family/friends' (6%). The single major influence on choice of career was a 'desire to work with people'; Indian students were twice as likely to report this as white or other ethnic groups.ConclusionFinal year dental students report a wide range of important influences on their choice of dentistry, with variation by sex, ethnicity and mode of entry in relation to individual influences. Features of the 'professional job', followed by 'healthcare and people' were the most important underlying factors influencing choice of career.
Highlights
Dental graduates are joining a profession experiencing changes in systems of care, funding and skill mix
Programme of research The findings presented in this paper represent part of a larger programme of research the aim of which is to investigate the views of final year dental students', and recent graduates, on their future professional careers and explore how they consider their working lives may be enhanced
Influences on choice of dentistry as a professional career: univariate analysis Important influences: multiple response Students were asked to score their level of support for a wide range of influences according to the level of importance they perceived the factor had in their choice of a professional career in dentistry (Figure 1)
Summary
Dental graduates are joining a profession experiencing changes in systems of care, funding and skill mix. Research into the motivation and expectations of the emerging workforce is vital to inform professional and policy decisions. [12] Fundamental changes to state funded dental care, include the introduction of a new dental contract for National Health Service [NHS] dentistry in England and Wales, with limits to the volume of state care that may be provided, [13,14,15] a significant shift of dental care to the private sector, [16] pressure on jobs from international graduates, [17] increased emphasis on skill-mix development within the dental team; [18] professionalisation of dental care professionals [DCPs]; [19] and continual innovation in dental techniques, products and materials [20]. [50] None of the above studies has examined motivation in relation to all three demographic variables of sex, ethnicity and admission type, which given the changing nature of the profession is an important area for research The lack of altruism identified in their sample of students is not supported by other studies, [10,41,48,49] and researchers in the field. [50] None of the above studies has examined motivation in relation to all three demographic variables of sex, ethnicity and admission type, which given the changing nature of the profession is an important area for research
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