Potential Career Choice Research Articles

VOCATION AND CAREER CHOICE IN HIGHER ART EDUCATION

Music education in the early 21st century is aimed at a new educational paradigm in the context of post-non-classical art pedagogy. An integral feature of modern art education is focus on formation of an artist with a bright, multifaceted and creative individuality, as well as vocation for potential career choice. It means an individual’s awareness of the conditions and requirements of social existence, the readiness and ability to respond to social changes and needs, to hear and understand one’s personal calling in them. Vocation is an ethical phenomenon, a manifestation of motivation to achieve intangible benefits or do good. At the same time, vocation is an existential phenomenon. A person lives in a vocation, seeks it for himself, feels the futility of existence without it. In general, in applied research, vocation is associated with a certain human activity, mainly professional. Thus, pedagogical activity is combined with a professional vocation. These processes take place through the assimilation of the experience of previous generations and contemporaries, where the individual is involved in the cultural and spiritual space of his community. The sense of art education is to focus a person’s attention on the purpose of his creative activity, on understanding and choosing the good that he wants to grasp and realize in his life. Therefore, it is relevant to discuss the possibilities of practical implementation of the vocation factor in the system of music education and specialists training in this field. This provides an opportunity to form a new type of mentality and behavior of people, in which the motive of the individual’s self-development plays a more significant role.

Effect of Educational Intervention Program on Awareness, Knowledge, Attitude, and Willingness to Recommend Physiotherapy as a Career Among High School Science Teachers

Introduction. Physical therapy (physiotherapy) is an essential part of the health care delivery system. High school students with an interest in science may be suited for a career in health care, including physical therapy. It is important therefore that their teachers have good knowledge and great willingness to recommend physical therapy as a potential career choice to them. Few studies have been carried out on the knowledge about physical therapy among different populations. The previous reports highlighted the need for educational interventions to increase the knowledge about physical therapy. However, no previous study has investigated the effectiveness of these educational interventions. Therefore, this study was aimed at evaluating the effect of an educational intervention in improving the level of knowledge, attitude, and willingness to recommend physical therapy as a potential career choice to students among high (secondary) school science teachers in Nnewi, Anambra State, Nigeria. Review of Literature. Few studies have been carried out on the knowledge about physical therapy among different populations. There is need for educational interventions to increase the knowledge about physical therapy. No previous study has investigated the effectiveness of these educational interventions. Subjects. Consecutively recruited 99 science teachers from purposively selected high schools. Methods. This was a pretest–posttest quasi experimental study. Consecutively recruited 99 science teachers from purposively selected high schools participated in the study. Data were collected preintervention and postintervention using a self-developed instrument. Results. Only 20.2% of the participants had a good knowledge of physical therapy on pretest but the proportion with good knowledge increased to 96% after the intervention. Ninety-nine percent of the respondents also developed a positive attitude towards physical therapy and willingness to recommend physical therapy as a potential career choice to their students after the educational intervention. Discussion and Conclusion. Awareness of physical therapy among science teachers is poor. The effectiveness of the educational intervention program revealed a role for physical therapists who wish to enhance the awareness of counselors. Well-informed teachers and counselors may be equipped with the required knowledge to guide the career choice of their students.

Study protocol for ELIXIR: an evaluation of learning and exposure to the undergraduate Interventional Radiology curriculum

Abstract Background Despite the initiation of a suggested undergraduate curriculum for Interventional Radiology (IR) by the British Society of Interventional Radiology, there is still a lack of exposure to IR amongst medical students and junior doctors. It is unclear how much of the proposed curriculum is implemented in the undergraduate curricula of the respective medical schools in the UK. Methods and Materials This is a cross-sectional study that aims to evaluate the level of awareness of IR as a subspecialty amongst medical students in the UK. All final year students from the 34 UK medical universities that award primary medical qualifications are eligible for the study. A student representative from each university will be recruited through a social media drive to distribute a survey. The online questionnaire is divided into five different sections; (i) Particulars, (ii) Basic knowledge on IR, (iii) Medical School Curriculum and Exposure, (iv) Career Prospects and (v) Satisfaction with Medical School Curriculum, with the intent of gauging their exposure and understanding of IR throughout the years of medical school and assessing their perceptions of IR as a potential career choice.

Attitudes Towards Psychiatry in Lebanese Medical Students: What Are the Factors that Could Lead to a More Favorable Outlook?

ObjectiveThe authors aimed to assess the attitudes towards psychiatry of all Lebanese medical students, as well as the factors that could have led to these attitudes, whether favorable or not.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, the authors ran a questionnaire among a sample of Lebanese medical students from all medical faculties, regions in Lebanon, and years of medical school, using the ATP-30 scale and the WHO-5 well-being index. The answers from the 607 participants were statistically analyzed on SPSS version 23.0.ResultsAmong participants, 95.1% had a positive attitude towards psychiatry, reflecting a favorable outlook among Lebanese medical students overall. The average ATP-30 score in our sample was 111.95 out of 150 (SD = 12.55), which is in the range of countries of higher socio-economic level such as Germany and Switzerland. Also, 26.5% of participants reported that they consider psychiatry as a potential career choice. No demographic factor had any influence on the ATP-30 score. In the multivariate analysis, only two factors resulted in favorable attitudes: exposure to a patient with a diagnosed psychiatric illness in the student’s surroundings and a lower WHO-5 well-being index.ConclusionThis study’s results do not fit into the traditional “developed vs. developing countries” paradigm. However, Lebanon still has a lot of challenges to face in order to provide quality mental healthcare.

Van Hiele Theory-Based Instruction and Grade 11 Students’ Geometric Proof Competencies

South African matric results on the National Senior Certificate indicate low success in geometry, as do other African countries such as Nigeria. This poor performance affects potential career choices for students and limits the number of students who enter the highly-needed engineering fields on the African continent. Hence, this paper reports findings from a quasi-experiment involving 186 Grade 11 students from four conveniently selected township secondary schools in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The study tested the effect of Van Hiele theory-based instruction on the students’ geometric proof competencies. Data were collected using a geometry proof test and analysed using nonparametric analysis of covariance. Results showed that there was a statistically significant difference in students’ performance between the treatment and control groups (𝑇=595.9,𝑝=.005,𝜂𝑝2 =.684). Analysis of nonparametric regression curves fitted for the treatment and control groups showed that the treatment group had higher post-test scores than the control group. It was therefore concluded that Van Hiele theory-based instruction is more effective in teaching non-routine geometric proofs than conventional instruction. The study recommends that geometry teachers in upper secondary school should consider implementing Van Hiele theory-based instruction to enhance students’ geometric proof competence.

What Are Medical Students Using Social Media For? Survey Analysis and Insight Into High and Low Frequency Users

Some have proposed that novice medical learners actively use social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to obtain medical knowledge and explore potential career choices. One website used by many is www.studentdoctor.net (SDnet). We set forth to survey first year medical students to identify if they use SNS to learn about career opportunities and/or medical concepts and investigate use of SDnet.

Making the invisible visible: practical applications of visual metaphors in teaching and learning accounting

Current accounting graduates will be engaged in a constantly changing and visual world, and educators can help them by harnessing the power of visual metaphors. This article illustrates how hand-drawings by student groups can reveal negative perceptions of accountants as a potential career choice for new students, making such perceptions something to overcome. In addition, it shows how drawings can make novel and complex concepts more accessible for novice learners. The article demonstrates that student-generated drawings can be a tool to identify and dispel misconceptions in the learning of accounting. Finally, the article shows how drawings can aid in the teaching of difficult accounting concepts. Visual metaphor is a powerful interdisciplinary communication skill that is necessary in the field of accounting reporting. Educators and their students benefit from using hand drawing as active learning for developing visual intelligence in the field of accounting.

Genetic Counseling in Middle School Science Club: A Pilot Study.

Compared to demographic data from other healthcare professions, genetic counselors (GCs) are more likely to be Caucasian females. Many current underrepresented in genetic counseling (URGC) professionals in the field found genetic counseling later in their careers due in part to their lack of awareness. A pilot study consisting of equal numbers of male and female sixth grade science club students was conducted to explore the impact that direct teaching might have on students' awareness of and interest in genetic counseling. The analysis used the non-parametric Wilcoxon signed rank test due to the ordinal, Likert-scale data. Results derived from a pre- and post-survey of lesson participants indicated a statistically significant increase in students' perceptions of having a role model in a science career. Efforts to reach local middle school students to highlight genetic counseling as a potential career choice, especially by role models, may add to the continued work being done to increase the diversity of future genetic counseling applicant pools.

UK undergraduate aspirations and attitudes survey: do we have a perception problem in clinical radiology?

To understand medical students' potential long-term career choices, with particular reference to radiology, and their current perceptions and experiences of radiology and radiologists, with the aim to help inform future initiatives for undergraduate and early postgraduate medical education and workforce strategies. An invitation to an online survey was sent to all undergraduate medical students at a large UK medical school, using Likert-style, multiple choice and ranking questions. A quantitative approach was used to explore these responses (n=328). Radiology ranked only 10th out of 14 specialties for long-term career preference amongst medical student respondents (n=328). Radiology was judged as being "low status", but enabled a "good" work-life balance. Medical students considered making an impact on patient diagnosis and level of intellectual challenge as positive influences of a potential career in radiology. Perception of radiology by the public, patient relationship/contact time, perception of radiology by other clinicians, variation of work, and radiology work environment were all perceived more negatively. Radiology remains a specialty with limited exposure and experience for undergraduate students, who appear to be incompletely aware of the scope and range of the work of modern radiologists. Greater exposure to radiology teaching in the undergraduate curriculum and placements in radiology departments may increase and expedite medical students' understanding and enjoyment of radiology at a juncture where demand for radiology services is increasing rapidly in the UK.

Political is personal: Brexit and the career aspirations of UK undergraduates

Findings from a small-scale qualitative research project exploring the impact of Brexit on the career aspirations of final year students at a UK university reveal the centrality of values and emotion in career decision-making. Although not conclusive or generalisable, these findings nevertheless demonstrate the impact of the wider context of the world we live in, and specifically, of political events, on perceptions of career and potential career choice. This presents a challenge to career development theorists and practitioners alike to adequately address and respond to the impact of the political in relation to career decision-making.

Predicting entrepreneurial intentions of freshmen students from EAO modeling and personal background

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of personal background and entrepreneurial attitudes on entrepreneurial intentions of Saudi Freshmen students of Al Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University. After reviewing the literature and related theories on entrepreneurship, attitudes and intentions, this study provides a conceptual framework trying to identify the effects of most influential factors on individual’s intention to become an entrepreneur. Design/methodology/approach Through a survey study developed from previous empirical studies, the paper aims to investigate the significant elements of intentions from a sample of 103 students randomly selected. This study is both descriptive and analytical using correlations and multiple regressions. Findings The findings show that significant correlations among variables were found. The achievement and innovation attitudes are significant elements to entrepreneurial intentions. Students scored quite high on them, but, moderate on personal control and self-esteem attitudes. Students might have a real intention for starting their own businesses later that could be sustained during their studies at university. Additionally, entrepreneurs among relatives and entrepreneurship training were also the other significant elements to intentions. Research Limitations/implications Implications for future research are described and some pragmatic recommendations are provided to promote students’ entrepreneurial initiatives and behaviors at university. Social Implications The exploratory analysis suggests the need to develop more the awareness of students to entrepreneurship as potential career choice to help them to be active in the society. Originality/value In this paper, the Entrepreneurial Attitude Orientation model is validated for a Saudi university considered as a specific context. Broader reflections about a freshman student entrepreneurship as refocused research agenda is also considered by undertaking some new research and developing a comprehensive and contextual framework.

An active, collaborative approach to learning skills in flow cytometry.

Advances in science education research have the potential to improve the way students learn to perform scientific interpretations and understand science concepts. We developed active, collaborative activities to teach skills in manipulating flow cytometry data using FlowJo software. Undergraduate students were given compensated clinical flow cytometry listmode output (FCS) files and asked to design a gating strategy to diagnose patients with different hematological malignancies on the basis of their immunophenotype. A separate cohort of research trainees was given uncompensated data files on which they performed their own compensation, calculated the antibody staining index, designed a sequential gating strategy, and quantified rare immune cell subsets. Student engagement, confidence, and perceptions of flow cytometry were assessed using a survey. Competency against the learning outcomes was assessed by asking students to undertake tasks that required understanding of flow cytometry dot plot data and gating sequences. The active, collaborative approach allowed students to achieve learning outcomes not previously possible with traditional teaching formats, for example, having students design their own gating strategy, without forgoing essential outcomes such as the interpretation of dot plots. In undergraduate students, favorable perceptions of flow cytometry as a field and as a potential career choice were correlated with student confidence but not the ability to perform flow cytometry data analysis. We demonstrate that this new pedagogical approach to teaching flow cytometry is beneficial for student understanding and interpretation of complex concepts. It should be considered as a useful new method for incorporating complex data analysis tasks such as flow cytometry into curricula.

Destined to Design? How and Why Australian Women Choose to Study Industrial Design

AbstractDespite over three decades of legislation and initiatives designed to tackle the traditional gender divide in the science, technology and design fields, only a quarter of the registered architects in Australia are women. There are no statistics available for other design disciplines, with little known about why women choose design as a career path and who or what influences this decision. This qualitative research addresses this knowledge gap, through semi‐structured in‐depth interviews conducted with 19 Australian women who completed an industrial (product) design degree. Thematic analysis revealed three key themes: childhood aptitude and exposure; significant experiences and people; and design as a serendipitous choice. The findings emphasise the importance of early exposure to design as a potential career choice, highlighting the critical role played by parents, teachers, professionals and social networks.

Growing the 'SEAD': Expansion of the Surgical Exploration and Discovery Program

The declining popularity of surgical specialties among North American medical students has been attributed partially to limited early exposure and minimal involvement of surgeons in preclerkship education; in response, the Surgical Exploration and Discovery (SEAD) program was developed at the University of Toronto in 2012. SEAD is a 2-week curriculum that provides first-year medical students comprehensive exposure to surgical specialties through operating room observerships, simulation workshops, and career discussions. This study is the first to examine implementation of the SEAD program at another site. This prospective cohort study evaluated the effectiveness of the SEAD program in improving surgical knowledge and facilitating career decision making when compared with a control group. In all, 18 students participated in the SEAD program, and 18 students from the same class read only the program's instructional manual; both the groups completed multiple-choice tests and questionnaires at baseline and at completion to assess knowledge acquisition and career-related learning. Both the groups significantly improved their surgical knowledge, but there was no difference between groups. SEAD participants made significantly greater progress in refining their career decisions when compared with the control group; all but one SEAD participant either gained interest in or ruled out a surgical specialty as a potential career choice compared with only 10 of the participants reading the manual only. The SEAD program provides a meaningful opportunity for medical students to explore surgical careers during preclerkship and to make better-informed career decisions. This expansion demonstrates that the program can be successfully reproduced at another institution.

Pygmalion in the Classroom and the Home: Expectation's Role in the Pipeline to STEMM

Background/ContextAlthough students frequently begin forming ideas about potential college majors or career choices prior to entering college, research on Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM), and (M)edicine has almost exclusively focused on students’ experiences in postsecondary institutions. To better understand the full length of the STEMM pipeline—from high school through to postsecondary levels—it is essential to identify and explore factors that influence students’ choices in STEMM while they are in secondary schools, a setting that is arguably the first critical step of the pipeline.Purpose/ObjectiveAmong factors that influence students’ choices to pursue STEMM fields, this study examines the influence of students’ self-efficacy and expectation, as well as the expectation and encouragement they received from parents and high school teachers on their decisions to major in, complete a degree in, and pursue a career in STEMM. Given this focus on expectation specifically, the study employs a conceptual framework developed through the application of prior literature on teacher and parent expectations, as well as Social Cognitive Career Theory.Research DesignUsing the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY) 1987 data, the study investigated students’ decision making at three distinct time points along a typical STEMM education/career path and predicted their persistence in the STEMM pipeline by utilizing logistic regression analyses. To further examine whether such sets of expectations are moderated by gender, analysis also included interaction terms for gender and teacher expectation, as well as those of gender and parent expectation.Findings/ResultsThe results of this study indicate that expectation plays a significant role in students’ choices in STEMM and teacher expectation is shown to be especially influential. Focusing on gender differences, males’ choices in STEMM were shown to be most affected by their teachers’ educational expectations and encouragement while females’ choices were most affected by those of their parents.Conclusions/RecommendationsThe decision to pursue education and a career in a STEMM is not a one-time decision, but a longitudinal process that begins during secondary education and carries on through into college. The findings of this study provide meaningful information about the importance of students’ self-efficacy and expectation within the STEMM pipeline, as well as the influence teacher expectations and encouragement can have on students’ pursuit of and persistence in STEMM.

Reporting MāOri Participation in Paramedic Education and the Ems Workforce in New Zealand

Introduction Indigenous people have poorer health outcomes and are under-represented in the general healthcare workforce. This study aims to: i) quantify Māori participation in paramedic education and the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) workforce in New Zealand, ii) compare these with reported Māori participation rates across healthcare education and the general healthcare workforce, and iii) identify factors that may promote or inhibit Māori engagement in the sector. Methods Providers of tertiary paramedic education and EMS systems were surveyed and relevant literature was reviewed. Results Māori averaged 7.5% of total enrolments in tertiary paramedic education over a 5 year period and, in 2013, represented 5% of the total EMS workforce. The literature review included 14 publications. Māori participation across the general healthcare workforce is low. Factors promoting Māori tertiary enrolment include the desires to attain a career, enhance Māori health and have a steady income. Barriers inhibiting academic studies include inadequate support, low academic and socio-economic backgrounds and the absence of a culturally safe learning environment. Aspects promoting workforce engagement include clear career pathways, support for workforce development, having role-models, mentors and leaders in the profession, and working in a culturally supportive environment. Conclusions Māori are significantly under-represented in the EMS sector and further research is required to determine which factors promote and inhibit participation. Recruitment and retention processes should be reviewed by employers and educators and teaching strategies within paramedic programmes reconsidered. Initiatives aimed at engaging Māori in the health workforce should ensure they promote paramedicine as a potential career choice.

Many high-school students don't want to study physics: active learning experiences can change this negative attitude!

A two-question survey has been prepared for and applied in this research with aim to assess the relative efficiency of two different teaching methods, called Reading, Presenting and Questioning (RPQ) and Experimenting and Discussion (ED), in changing students' attitudes toward physics as a potential career choice. The data of a one-semester-long high-school project indicate that RPQ group (91 students) has not achieved a statistically significant improvement in attitudes, while the ED group (85 students) got an improvement of +10,0%. Theses results suggest that the ED method, based on active physics learning paradigm, is a good model for a significant improvement of students' attitudes toward physics as a potential career choice, both with girls and boys who study high school physics.

Psychiatrists: An Endangered Species? A Study to Observe Attitude of Fifth Year Medical Students to Psychiatry and to Compare Change in Same after a Psychiatry Posting During Medical School.

This study was conducted to gauge the attitude of fifth year medical students to psychiatry as a potential career choice and to determine if an eight-week clinical attachment had any impact on this. We surveyed a cohort of fifth year medical students from Trinity College Dublin. A purpose designed, self-completed questionnaire was used to establish a number of variables and was given to students on the first and last day of their attachment in psychiatry. Participation was optional and responses were confidential. Questionnaires were distributed following an explanation of the purpose of the study. The survey was applied to 118 fifth year medical students. The most significant finding of the study was the increase in number of students choosing psychiatry (17%) as a possible career upon completion of the attachment as compared to before (4%). The majority of the students considered psychiatry as a mainstream specialty with little change in this perception pre and post attachment. Almost all of the students believed that a psychiatry posting would improve their communication skills when dealing with patients. Approximately half of students chose medical subspecialties as career choice prior to their psychiatry posting but this declined afterwards. There was a small increase in the number of students wanting to become GPs and those who were undecided about their potential career choice. With regards to deterrents to doing psychiatry, the principal one was the belief that psychiatry was too depressing and stressful. Lack of interest, adverse career prospects and financial considerations featured in a minority of student answers. The findings of this study suggest that psychiatry remains less attractive to students as a career compared to some other specialities but a clinical attachment may be an important means of raising interest in psychiatry as a career.

P03-537 - How medical student placements at a psychiatry hospital can be utilised to make psychiatry a popular career choice

It is perceived that negative attitudes towards mental illness in undergraduate medical students can impact student's decision in choosing psychiatry as a medical career. Improvement in psychiatry placements for undergraduate medical students can result in changing student's attitude towards psychiatry as a career choice. We demonstrate how students’ placements from various medical schools at a major psychiatric hospital contributed towards enhancing student's interest towards psychiatry. Medical students who had their placement over the last one year were contacted for an anonymised student perspective survey.While majority of students did not have psychiatry as their potential career choice before they started their placements more than two third rated psychiatry as a potential career choice based on their experience from the placements. This encouraged us to improve the placement standards based on student's perspective. Students suggested that more use of medical training in psychiatry, improvement in teaching and placement standards and more psychiatry placements before specialised training can contribute towards making psychiatry as one of the popular career choices. Student's preferred interactive teaching sessions including case based discussions and informal teaching sessions during ward rounds and clinics. Overall students found their placements helpful but more so to perform well in their examinations as compared to coverage of full psychiatry curriculum.It is planned to conduct the survey again after necessary changes based on student's perspective to evaluate whether further improvement in placements can continue in contributing towards increasing medical recruitment in psychiatry.

Specialty doctors

Twelve months on from the emergence of the specialty doctor, Lynne Prophet looks at the often maligned career grade posts as a potential career choice