Evaluation Of Dental Students’ Sociodemographic Characteristics And Perspectives On Dentistry

Abstract

Objective: There are numerous factors that play a role in a student’s selection of a profession, including examinations that need to be passed before being admitted into a programme such as dentistry. The aim of this study was to investigate the sociodemographic characteristics of the students admitted to the Pamukkale University Faculty of Dentistry based on their Student Selection and Placement Examination score, to determine their reasons for entering dental school and to examine their expectations from the dental profession. Methods: We administered a questionnaire to the first-, second-, and third-year students of the Pamukkale University Faculty of Dentistry. The questionnaire collected the students’ gender, type of high school they graduated from, the region of Turkey they were from, their reasons for selecting dental school and their expectations about dentistry. Results: Overall, 69.5% of the students entered the faculty of dentistry voluntarily. In addition, 70.3% of the students stated that would still enter dental school if they were to take the placement examination again. The majority of students stated that it is important for a dentist to be helpful to people. Moreover, a significant proportion of the students planned to continue with dental specialisation after graduating from dental school. Conclusion: Willingly choosing to attend dental school and to become a dentist would help students cope with the myriad challenges they will experience in their education and professional lives. In addition, the fact that students' financial gain expectations when they become dentists remain in the background will ensure that more attention is paid to professional ethics. © 2025, Ataturk Universitesi. All rights reserved.