title: A qualitative study on physicians' perceptions of specialty characteristics.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There has been limited research on physicians' perceptions of the specialty characteristics that are needed to sustain a successful career in medical specialties in Korea. Medical Specialty Preference Inventory in the United States or SCI59 (specialty choice inventory) in the United Kingdom are implemented to help medical students plan their careers. The purpose of this study was to explore the characteristics of the major specialties in Korea.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve physicians from different specialties participated in an exploratory study consisting of qualitative interviews about the personal ability and emotional characteristics and job attributes of each specialty. The collected data were analysed with content analysis methods.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twelve codes were extracted for ability & skill attributes, 23 codes for emotion & attitude attributes, and 12 codes for job attributes. Each specialty shows a different profile in terms of its characteristic attributes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings have implications for the design of career planning programs for medical students.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Education, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Kwi Hwa
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-0008-2400
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Education, Korea National Open University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Soo-Koung
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-0456-2436
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Jun
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Ie Byung
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-0194-1665
authors.initials: IeB
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D002321:Career Choice; D002755:Choice Behavior; D004501:Education, Medical; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D010820:Physicians; D011361:Professional Competence; D036301:Qualitative Research; D056910:Republic of Korea; D013038:Specialization; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014937:Work
keywords: Career development; Medical students; Specialty choice