Career Plans, Specialty Preferences, and Perceptions of Pediatric Dentistry Among Dental Students: A Cross- Sectional Study

Year 2025, Volume: 3 Issue: 3, 53 - 57, 31.12.2025

Mehran Moghbel , Dilara Dinc

https://doi.org/10.62243/edr.1829936

Abstract

Aim The aim of this study was to determine the career plans, specialty preferences, and perceptions of Pediatric Dentistry (Pedodontics) among students at Biruni University Faculty of Dentistry, and to reveal the relationship of these factors with students' grade level and demographic characteristics.
Material and method This descriptive and cross-sectional survey study included 268 students. Data were collected online via Google Forms between October 13 and October 17, 2025. Statistical analyses included Pearson's Chi-Square and Fisher's Exact tests.
Results Statistically significant associations were found between specialty preference and gender (p = 0.015), knowledge of postgraduate education upon university entry (p=0.020), career motivations (p = 0.037), perception of the best specialty for personal quality of life (p< 0.001), perception of the most sufficient department for patient care (p=0.003), and the likelihood of choosing Pedodontics as a career (p<0.001). The majority of those who preferred Pedodontics were female, and they reported higher motivations for "establishing my own practice" and "wanting to help people."
Conclusion Tt was observed that gender and professional motivations are significant determinants of students' specialty choices, and that despite a positive perception of the future of Pedodontics, there is a general interest-preference dilemma. It is recommended that dental education should provide more comprehensive and early guidance on specialty fields to support students' career goals.

Keywords

Carier plan , Dentistry , Pedodontics , Specialty preference , Student

Ethical Statement

The study protocol was approved by the Biruni University Scientific Research Ethics Committee (No: 2024-BİAEK/14-25)

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