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Future aspirations of interns of dental institutions in Karachi, Pakistan

Sonia Sameen

Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the aspirations and influencing factors of dental house officers to pursue advancements in their careers as dental professionals. Material & Methods: This was a cross-sectional, observational study. A self-administered questionnaire was designed to evaluate their inclination to choose dentistry as a career. It took into account the participants’ demographic and socioeconomic details along with a list of 30 factors grouped into three sections that were rated on a Likert scale. The sections covered career influencing factors, future career plans and interest in dental post-graduate

specialties. Data from 220 respondents was recorded and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: The results showed that majority of the respondents were females (68.7%) and belonged to a middle socioeconomic background (65.4%). Age in the sample ranged from 22-25 years. Majority of the respondents reported financial stability (45.8%) and altruistic

motives (37.5%) as the main encouragements to choose dentistry as a career. Work opportunities abroad (52.2%) and post-graduate studies (33.6%) were the most coveted future career plans. Participants expressed their greatest interest in the sub-specialty fields of oral surgery (42.9%) and operative and restorative dentistry (37.4%). Conclusions: The future aspirations associated with dentistry as a career were primarily

materialistic and academic. It would seem that dental interns in Karachi, Pakistan find more opportunities abroad and wish to work towards brighter future prospects. They also aim to pursue post-graduate studies and research which would ensure dentistry as a constantly progressing and prevailing area of healthcare. This study aims to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the professional as well as on personal development and skills of business students in Pakistan. The data of the study consisted of 800 undergraduating business students of 4-year degree programs from 15 universities of Pakistan. The study used structured questionnaire (35 close-ended questions assessed using 5-point Likert scale) comprised of six parts: Part I: Demographic information, Part II: Reasons for participation in internship, and Part III to VI: Assessment of information related to professional and personal growth and skills. The study employed descriptive analysis to evaluate demographic information and central tendencies of the responses. Furthermore, scale measurement analysis is used to check distribution normality of study data and reliability of the questionnaire. The results of the study depict the impact of internship programs on the professional and personal growth and skills of the business students of Pakistan. The change of life stages from a student to a professional is not always very simple. Students have to face many challenges when they enter into professional life. They have to adjust themselves according to the professional environment by implementing their conceptual knowledge in the new world of work. Usually, business students use their skills and theoretical business knowledge in their first jobs. By integrating conceptual knowledge and training through academic internship programs, students can be facilitated to better implement their concepts at the workplace. According to Gault et al, academic internships are a bridge to link the theory and practice by taking part in supervised and scheduled work. These internship programs not only improve students personal skills but also polish their professional growth and experience. Today, educational institutes, students and business recruiters are well aware of the importance of internship programs. Internship programs are the opportunities for educational institutes to upgrade the students enrollment and prepare their curriculum. For students, internships are experience of practical work. As companies prefer those business graduates who have required skills and practical knowledge, internships supply valuable employees and competent job applicants to the companies. Internship programs enable students to get training during their course programs and save companies’ supervision and training costs by providing them trained employees.