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- Purpose: We describe factors influencing the career choices of students enrolled in Canadian dietetics programs. Methods: A survey was administered, in class or online, to core first- and fourth-year classes in seven dietetics programs in various provinces (n=397). Data were analyzed with the use of descriptive statistics. Chi-square testing for independence established significant relationships. Results: Students ranked personal satisfaction, job security, and a professional career as important general career outcomes. These factors were also perceived to be attainable through a dietetics career. The majority of students chose dietetics while they were enrolled in a post-secondary degree program (44%), were primarily influenced by family members (54%), and based their choice on information acquired through the media (50%). Motivations for choosing dietetics included an interest in nutrition (91%) and health (90%), and a desire to help others (82%). Younger students placed more importance on economic rewards and having a position of authority than did older students. Older students identified personal satisfaction as more important in career selection than did younger students. Female respondents placed higher value on job flexibility than did their male counterparts. Conclusions: Career choice is based on a variety of internal and external factors. Opportunities exist for strategic recruitment efforts by educators and the profession.
- Purpose: Perceptions about males within the dietetic profession were examined among students enrolled in dietetic programs. Methods: A survey was administered in classes or online to first- and fourth-year nutrition students in seven dietetic programs. Data were subjected to content analysis to determine why students thought more males were not choosing dietetics as a career, and what impact an increase in males choosing dietetics might have on the profession. Results: Barriers to career choice were primarily gendered. Respondents believed an increase in male dietitians would be positive, increasing professional diversity. Specifically, more male role models would reach more male clients and increase male interest in dietetics as a career. Students also foresaw improved professional status, leading to greater professional respect and credibility. Current stereotyping would be challenged. Perspectives revealed heteronormative assumptions that would influence recruitment strategies. Conclusions: The findings suggest that broadening the current sex composition of the profession could be beneficial. Attitudes and practices from inside and outside the dietetic profession can influence career choice. Further research would allow a more nuanced approach to the complex and interrelated issues associated with sex and gendered behavior as they relate to the professional complement.
- Purpose: Students’ identity development and professional socialization during dietetic education were explored. Methods: Thirteen undergraduate dietetic students from two universities completed three in-depth interviews based on Seidman's phenomenological approach. The students were at various stages of their education. Data were analyzed with a feminist form of inductive thematic analysis. Results: Dietetic students come to the educational process with a broad interest in health, helping, or foods and nutrition. The academic and practical components of dietetic education create opportunities for students to refine personal interests in order to (re-)envision their place within the profession. The complexity of professional socialization and identity development was illuminated as some students’ focus was redirected to becoming an intern rather than becoming a dietitian. Students transformed their identity to meet the requirements they thought were expected or necessary to obtain an internship. Internship competition and the program environment can influence this transformation. Conclusions: Professional identity development begins before dietetic education and develops within the context of that education, representing the intersection of both people and events. A recognition and understanding of these complexities can result in strategic recruitment, informed curriculum changes, and professional development opportunities for dietetic educators, which will enhance their ability to support students in the professional socialization process.
- Fran Martin Bowden MScAHN, PDt, CDE,
- Daphne Lordly MA, PDt,
- Jayne Thirsk RD, PhD, FDC, and
- Lynda Corby MSc, MEd, RD, FDC
Purpose: Dietitians of Canada has collaborated with experts in knowledge translation and transfer, technology, and dietetic practice to develop and implement an innovative online decision-support system called Practice-based Evidence in Nutrition (PEN). A study was conducted to evaluate the perceived facilitators and barriers that enable dietitians to use or prevent them from using PEN. Methods: As part of the overall evaluation framework of PEN, a qualitative descriptive research design was used to address the research purpose. Individual, semi-structured telephone interviews with 17 key informants were completed, and the interview transcripts underwent qualitative content analysis. Results: Respondents identified several facilitators of and barriers to PEN use. Facilitators included specificity to dietetics, rigorous/ expert review, easy accessibility, current content, credible/ secure material, well-organized/easy-to-use material, material that is valuable to practice, and good value for money. Barriers included perceived high cost, fee structuring/cost to students, certain organizational aspects, and a perceived lack of training for pathway contributors. Conclusions: This formative evaluation has indicated areas in which PEN could be improved and strategies to make PEN the standard for dietetic education and practice. Ensuring that PEN is meeting users’ knowledge needs is of the utmost importance if dietitians are to remain on the cutting edge of scientific inquiry.- Purpose: Various societal influences have shaped the way dietetic students view and react to current educational situations. Students’ perspectives were sought on conditions that caused stress in the educational environment, what they thought educators did not understand about them, and changes their faculty or preceptors had made to address their needs. Methods: Third- and fourth-year university students, interns in their final rotations, and master’s degree students completed a questionnaire (n=284). Results: Several stressors were identified: thinking about getting a job as a dietitian, lack of finances or debt, competing for internship positions, the ability to meet program demands, and envisioning the area in which they would specialize. The qualitative analysis highlighted gaps in understanding between students and educators. Gaps concerned student finances, the evaluation process, inflexible undergraduate and internship structures, competition among students, ineffective communication, and finding a balance between academics and other competing interests. Conclusions: A conflict exists between what students expect as part of their educational experience and what they actually experience. Students appreciated educators who engaged them in the learning process and recognized the realities of their lives.
- Purpose: Dietitians must pass the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination (CDRE) to practise. Writers’ experiences with the exam were examined, along with factors associated with anxiety and coping mechanisms, preparation strategies, and if and how anxiety, coping, and preparation strategies are perceived to be related to exam performance. Methods: An exploratory descriptive methodology with a researcher-designed questionnaire was used to collect data from a purposive sample in 1999 and 2000 (n=54), and from a convenience sample in 2005 and 2006 (n=11). Participants were CDRE writers from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Ontario. Results: Meaningful preparation was correlated with a more positive exam experience (p=0.023). Writers experiencing lower preparation anxiety were more confident they had passed (p=0.016). Successful coping strategies resulted in decreased writing anxiety (p=0.029). The 2005 to 2006 cohorts prepared less (p=0.004) and experienced less preparation anxiety (p=0.02). Five themes emerged, which extend our understanding of the exam-writing experience. Conclusions: Several strategies may positively influence writing anxiety and improve the overall writing experience. Individuals and organizations and/or writers can consider these findings as they engage in the exam process, revise and/or develop support material, give presentations, or provide advice.
- Purpose: The impact of storytelling in the classroom was examined, as was what motivates individuals to engage in storytelling. Methods: A storytelling methodology was introduced in an undergraduate nutrition course as an opportunity to enhance the teaching and learning environment. A 28-item, multi-part, self-administered survey was then distributed to the class (n=17). Results: Survey responses (n=15, 88% response) indicate that educators’ and students’ storytelling can positively influence the learning environment. This occurs through the creation of a greater focus on personalized information, glimpses of real-life experience, a connection with a topic as participants recognize similarities in their own personal experience and knowledge, and connections between different topics and through the emphasis on key concepts. Stories initiate useful conversations about unexplored struggles within practice, such as the emotional dimension(s) of an issue or what it means to be professional. Students are motivated to participate in storytelling through an external focus on others (i.e., helping others to learn) and an internal focus on self (i.e., seeking a connection with others to promote social dialogue). Several challenges related to the use of storytelling in the classroom emerged. Conclusions: Storytelling develops ways of knowing and dialoguing about issues, which has the potential to influence how students will approach their professional practice.
