Dw. Bartlett et al., EXPERIENCE OF UNDERGRADUATES FROM 3 LONDON DENTAL SCHOOLS AND TRAINERS FROM THE SOUTH EAST OF ENGLAND ON INTERVIEWS FOR VOCATIONAL-TRAININGIN 1996, British Dental Journal, 183(8), 1997, pp. 284-288
Objective To assess the current perceptions, motivations and expectati
ons of trainers and vocational dental practitioners (VDPs) of vocation
al training (VT) interviews. Design Questionnaire based study Setting
General practice study carried out in 1996. Subjects Undergraduates fr
om three London dental schools and vocational trainers from south-east
England. Main outcome measures Perceptions, motivation and experience
s were assessed by a questionnaire. Results 111 questionnaires were po
sted to trainers with 72 (65% ) returned. 108 (70%) were returned from
the dental schools after 155 were posted. Graduates employed in hospi
tal training posts, armed forces and community dentistry were eliminat
ed from the results. Most trainers (74%) had previous experience of VT
and 89% of trainers thought that a CV was important for their choice
of VDPs. However, only 11% of trainers sought references before interv
iewing. 34% of VDPs preferred jobs close to their dental school but 75
% considered location to be vital to their choice. 67% of VDPs made 10
or more applications and 57% visited 10 or more practices for intervi
ews. 78% of VDPs considered that either genderism or racism was likely
to or possibly influenced the trainers choice. However, the converse
was not true, 62% of trainers considered it unlikely that the VDPs wer
e influenced by their gender or race. Conclusions Trainers and VDPs ha
ve different perceptions concerning the protocol of interviews for VT.