Motivazioni della scelta e prospettive di carriera degli studenti in odontoiatria in un'università italiana

Objectives. This study's aim was to investigate the reasons why students are currently choosing dentistry as a career and, also, to examine their career perceptions. Materials and Methods. Based on specific questions from available literature, a questionnaire was distributed to dental students attending the same university. The data collected from the questionnaire were statistically analyzed and Chi-squared test was used; the level of significance was set at p < 0.05. Results. The response rate was 89.4%. Several motivations were observed. It was found that the motive selected by the highest percentage of students was their interest in dental medicine. Moreover, the highest ranked career option was private practice after graduation. Conclusions. A better understanding of these motivations may be of significance for the training of future dentists.