title: Choosing dentistry as a career--Part I: A comparison of student motives.
abstract: The race/gender composition of first year dental students at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg has changed over the years. Classes were previously characterised by a predominance of white males, but the race/gender distribution at present reflects a predominance of black students and a significant increase in female students. This may indicate that the motives for choosing dentistry as a career have changed and this possibility was explored in two classes of first year students, those of 1985 and 1990. The black/white and male/female distributions were 29/71 and 85/15 per cent in 1985 and 52.5/47.5 and 57/43 per cent respectively, for the class of 1990. Despite race and gender differences, motives for choosing dentistry appeared to relate to an image of the profession that is perceived as a vehicle for the achievement of personal goals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Dentistry, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Brand
authors.forename: U M
authors.initials: UM
authors.lastname: Chikte
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002321:Career Choice; D003816:Dentists, Women / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D044469:Racial Groups; D012938:Social Perception; D013019:South Africa; D013335:Students, Dental / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires