MOTIVATIONS FOR STUDYING DENTISTRY AND DENTAL COLLEGE PREFERENCE AMONG RAS AL KHAIMAH MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES UNIVERSITY( RAKCODS) STUDENTS
students. The authors stated that there were many inconsistencies in their findings reflecting subjective rather than objective criteria selection by the students. The dental profession stands as a specialized field and enables fresh graduates to establish their own dental practice, thus the high valued concept of self-employment. In addition to the current study, many others 18-21 found similar motive strength among the respondents. A dental career is very attractive occupation and well-known for its high revenues. A substantial number of male students expressed their motives to study dentistry for financial gain and revealed a statistically significant difference when compared to female students( p = 0.033). This finding is in agreement with a similar regional study 13. Furthermore, dental practice is not the only wellpaid profession. However, in contrast to female respondents, more than half of the male students who preferred dentistry as their future career believed that the dental profession would pay far better than any other potential jobs( p < 0.001). In the Middle East culture, males are responsible for most of family expenditures whereas females are invariably dependent and this probably reflects the low financial concerns expressed by females as a priority for job preference. It appears that, when it comes to career decision males are likely to be motivated by working conditions and financial gain while females by altruistic and human factors, a view that is shared by other reports as well 13, 22. A private dental practice has the merit of time flexibility. This would make practitioners able to adjust their working schedule and find sufficient time to be with their families. Du Toit et al. 3, reported that“ leaving time for family life” was the first and strongest motivation for the surveyed students in the United States, Taiwan, Singapore, South Africa and Australia. In our study, more than half of the respondents, particularly the females considered this factor as crucial in taking a dental career decision. Another factor that might have influenced the students in their career choice was prestige. Dentists provide an essential oral health care service. Furthermore, the patients’ oral welfare and much of their total well-being is in the dentists’ hands; thus the profession occupies a highly respected position within the community. Over 50 % of the respondents rated prestige as an important factor for their career choice. This is in accordance with several previous reports 2, 3, 23. Nevertheless, others found that prestige was the least important motive 24, 25. This probably reflects the range of social differences. In many countries including USA and UK the title“ Doctor” is reserved for medical professionals or for those holding a PhD degree, while in the Middle East, the title is also used for dentists and this probably inspires motivation towards a dental career. In UAE there are four accredited dental colleges providing undergraduate programs, each has its own curriculum, admission criteria and fees structure. This diversity may induce preferences among applicants for dental colleges. Therefore, the second part of the survey sought answers to questions related to RAKCODS( Table 2). Probably this is the first study in the region to include another element of motivation in a survey querying for dental career, the“ INSTITUTE”. In 2011, the RAKCODS curriculum was completely revamped. Several new courses were added, clinical training credit hours were increased and the final year ends up with the submission of mandatory research project. Moreover, in Sep 2012 the college launched a new building complex with state of the art facilities. The survey revealed that 48 % of the respondents chose RAKCODS because of the curriculum structure that meets their own country requirement and matches international standards. Many of the RAKCODS students are expats and approval of the curriculum by the authorities of their countries is essential for the recognition of the BDS degree. A similar percentage of students( 47 %) were attracted by the fascinating building and associated facilities. The new students invariably visit the RAKCODS site and take a tour with their families before officially enrolling in the program to ensure satisfaction. The other issue that might influence the students’ admission or choice of a discipline is tuition. RAKCODS tuition remains the most reasonable compared to other dental colleges in UAE. About 27 % of the respondents might have considered RAKCODS for a dental career because of tuition. It appears that about 20 % of the surveyed students failed to get admission in other dental colleges, so that was the reason they chose RAKCODS. One fact remains unresolved in UAE with regard to admission to Universities. Students studying the British curriculum usually get their IGSC grades in mid-August and by mid-July all dental colleges would have filled their allocated seats, leaving those IGSC students with no chances for admission until the next academic year.
6. Conclusion The present study describes the diverse demographic background of the RAKCODS students. The motivations seemed to be associated with the socioeconomic aspects of dentistry. The main motives were the interest to treat and improve people’ s oral health, dentistry is a knowledge and skill-based profession, dentistry generates a potential high income and dentistry provides self-employment, and it is a career that provides adequate time to be with one’ s families. There were statistically significant differences in motivation between males and females with financial factors more influential for males, and altruistic factors for females. With regard to the factors that may have influenced the choice of RAKCODS as the“ INSTITUTE” for a dental career, the curriculum and fascinating facilities were the most attracting factors.
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