Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jun 21;13(6):e15790.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.15790. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Factors and Determinants of Choosing Pathology as a Future Career: Results From a Multi-Institution Study

Emad M Masuadi  1 , Mohamud S Mohamud  2 , Abdulrahman M Alhassan  2 , Khalid G Alharbi  2 , Ahmed S Hilabi  2 , Faisal A Alharbi  2 , Abdullah T Tatwani  2 , Abdullah I Farraj  3 , Sami Al-Nasser  4 , Mohammed F Safi  5
Affiliations

Factors and Determinants of Choosing Pathology as a Future Career: Results From a Multi-Institution Study

Emad M Masuadi et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Background Globally, less than 10% of graduating medical students select pathology as a future career. Many factors were reported from different settings to influence the choice of pathology. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors that determine medical students' preferences in choosing pathology as a future career. Methods This cross-sectional study surveyed students from three governmental medical schools in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A self-administered questionnaire that contained demographic questions and items that addressed perceived factors that affect the choice of pathology was distributed to medical students. Collected data were analyzed using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) Statistics for Windows, Version 25.0 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp). A chi-square test was used to determine the association between independent variables and interest in pathology. Results Out of the 400 questionnaires distributed, 338 students completed the survey with a response rate of 84.5%. Overall, surgery (24%) and internal medicine (20%) were the most favored, specialties with only 5% of the students selecting pathology as their first choice. Patient-doctor interaction (72.2%) was perceived as the most important factor in not choosing pathology as a future career. Taking an elective course, younger age groups, and year in medical school were all significantly associated (p<0.001) with an interest in pathology. Conclusion In this study, most of the students indicated surgery and internal medicine as their first specialty choices. Only 5% of the students chose pathology as their first choice. Two-thirds of medical students perceived pathologists do not interact with patients. A significant association was found between younger age groups, enrolling for a pathology course, and having an interest in pathology.

Keywords: career choice; factors; medical students; pathology; perception.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. First, second, and third specialty choices among medical students
Figure 2
Figure 2. Factors influencing specialty choices among medical students
Figure 3
Figure 3. Medical students’ perceptions of pathology as a future career
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Factors affecting medical students in formulating their specialty preferences in Jordan. Khader Y, Al-Zoubi D, Amarin Z, et al. BMC Med Educ. 2008;8:32. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Concerns about the pathology job market dominate a popular online pathology forum and likely deterred American medical students from pursuing pathology residency. Jajosky RP, Banks M, Jajosky AN. Heliyon. 2019;5:0. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Associations between medical school and career preferences in year 1 medical students in Scotland. Cleland J, Johnston PW, French FH, Needham G. Med Educ. 2012;46:473–484. - PubMed
    1. Gender differences in specialty preference and mismatch with real needs in Japanese medical students. Fukuda Y, Harada T. BMC Med Educ. 2010;10:15. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Medical career selection among newly graduated physicians in Madinah, KSA. Zolaly MA, Kasim K, Mahmoud MI. Med Teach. 2013;35 Suppl 1:0–7. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources