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Increasing Predoctoral Dental Students’ Motivations to Specialize in Prosthodontics
Author(s) -
Zarchy Marisa,
Kinnunen Taru,
Chang Brian M.,
Wright Robert F.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of dental education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.53
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1930-7837
pISSN - 0022-0337
DOI - 10.1002/j.0022-0337.2011.75.9.tb05167.x
Subject(s) - prosthodontics , specialty , salary , fixed prosthodontics , medical education , medicine , psychology , dentistry , family medicine , political science , law
This study provides data about factors that influence dental students’ decision of which specialty to pursue and describes program changes in prosthodontics designed to expand student interest in a prosthodontics training program. Of 176 current and recently graduated students at Harvard School of Dental Medicine, 167 responded to the e‐mail survey for a 94.9 percent response rate. Using the Pearson chi‐square analysis, we analyzed nine factors to determine their contribution to these students’ choice of specialty. Two factors, lecture and faculty/mentoring, were highly significant (p<0.006) regarding impact on the students’ introductory experience with prosthodontics. When choosing a specialty, 44 percent of all students ranked “enjoyment of providing the specialty service” as the most important factor. Students wishing to specialize in prosthodontics, however, ranked four significant factors: enjoyment of providing the specialty service (p<0.037, p<0.057); faculty influence (p<0.0002, p<0.0001); length of program (p<0.039, p<0.006); and cost of program (p<0.023, p<0.004). Respondents also ranked the nine American Dental Association‐recognized specialties regarding their perceptions of future salary and impact on the dental profession. They ranked prosthodontics fourth for future salary and fifth for impact on the profession. At the same time that this study was being conducted, key changes were being made in the graduate prosthodontics program; those appear to have had a positive impact on students’ interest in pursuing prosthodontics as a specialty.