title: Climate for career choices: survey of medical students' motivation for studying, career preferences and perception of their teachers as role models.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To assess the educational climate at a medical school, we explored students' perception of their motives for study, the importance of students' personal characteristics for success in the study and profession of medicine, students' perceptions of professional and personal characteristics of their teachers, and students' preferences for their future careers in medicine.
  
  
  METHODS
  We surveyed all students coming to the administration office to enroll for the following academic year (2nd to 6th year of study, n = 738) at Zagreb University Medical School, Croatia. Responses with answers to all questions (n = 482, 65% response rate) were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Students from both preclinical and clinical study years perceived their teachers to be formal: strict, authoritative, punctual, well prepared, and respectful of hierarchy. Similar formal characteristics were seen as important for success in their studies and in the medical profession. The strongest motivation for studying among students in all study years was task completion. Most of the students wanted a career in medical practice, with (n = 160, 33.2%) or without (n = 207, 42.9%) involvement in clinical research; a few (n = 3, 0.6%) wanted to do basic biomedical research, and an academic career was sought by 23.5% (n = 112). The choice of academic career was associated with grade point average (odds ratio [OR] = 1.75, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.10-2.88), higher scores on motivation scales for professional advancement (OR = 1.72; 95% CI = 1.12-2.63) and academic gains (OR = 1.58; 95% CI = 1.17-2.14).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Medical students perceive formal characteristics and self-interests as dominant aspects of the educational climate at medical school, where they are motivated mostly by task completion. The change towards a climate of social sensitivity and pro-social behavior may require less frontal and more interactive teaching, with personal interaction between students and teachers.
authors.affiliation: Zagreb University School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pangercić
authors.forename: Dario
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sambunjak
authors.forename: Darko
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hren
authors.forename: Matko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marusić
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marusić
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D035843:Biomedical Research; D002321:Career Choice; D002980:Climate; D017523:Croatia; D005180:Faculty, Medical; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*