Education Special Series
Sex Differences in Career Expectations of Physical Therapist Students Marie A Johanson
Background and Purpose There are some sex differences in the career activities of physical therapists. The purpose of this study was to determine whether these sex differences are reflected in the career expectations of physical therapist students.
Subjects Participants were 919 physical therapist students.
Methods Faculty at 34 physical therapist education programs distributed questionnaires to 1,172 of their students. The 919 returned questionnaires generated a response rate of 78.4%. Sex differences in career expectations were statistically analyzed with logistic regression.
MA Johanson, PT, PhD, OCS, is Assistant Professor, Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, 1441 Clifton Rd, Suite 170, Atlanta, GA 30322 (USA). Address all correspondence to Dr Johanson at:
[email protected]. [Johanson MA. Sex differences in career expectations of physical therapist students. Phys Ther. 2007;87:1199 –1211.] © 2007 American Physical Therapy Association
Results Men showed statistically significantly higher odds than women of expecting to own a private practice, to become a faculty member, to become a physical therapist manager or administrator, to publish articles in professional journals, and to have a higher income in the first year of employment.
Discussion and Conclusion At the outset of physical therapist education, there are sex differences in the career expectations of physical therapist students.
Post a Rapid Response or find The Bottom Line: www.ptjournal.org September 2007
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uch study on the career development of women in the health care professions has focused on women in historically male-dominated professions, such as medicine1–3 and veterinary medicine.4,5 However, sex differences in career development also have been reported for historically femaledominated professions, such as nursing and physical therapy.6 – 8 Data have shown sex differences in physical therapists’ employment status7,9 and practice setting.7,10 Sex differences in physical therapists’ income also have been documented,6,11 although differences in income may be related to other career differences, including employment status9 and practice setting.11 The American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) has long been aware of sex differences in the careers of physical therapists. In 1991, the APTA Executive Committee appointed a task force to focus on women’s issues in physical therapy.10 The APTA House of Delegates adopted goals in 1992 to improve the status of women in physical therapy; these goals were subsequently amended twice.10 The 4 goals of the plan are: (1) to increase awareness of the issues of inequity for women, (2) to recognize barriers to professional growth and career development and promote mechanisms to eliminate or reduce these barriers, (3) to promote physical therapy as a life-long profession, and (4) to provide for the systematic evaluation of women’s status and APTA action concerning women’s issues. However, the goals of APTA for improving the status of women are focused on physical therapists, rather than physical therapist students. It is possible that physical therapist students exhibit sex differences in career expectations. If that is the case, then the recognition of barriers to the full range of career options and the promotion of mechanisms to eliminate 1200
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or reduce these barriers may best be implemented during students’ professional education, rather than after entry into the profession. There is no research to indicate whether physical therapist students enter their professional programs with sex differences in career expectations. Knowledge of students’ career expectations as they begin their professional education may provide initial insight as to whether sex differences exist and, if so, whether such differences mirror the current sex differences in physical therapists’ career paths. If APTA is to achieve the aforementioned goals for improving the status of women in physical therapy, then interventions to support women’s career development and participation in the full range of career options may best be targeted to students as well as clinicians. The purpose of this study was to determine whether physical therapist students show evidence of sex differences in career expectations before any potential influences from faculty and clinicians during their professional education.
Method Survey Instrument Mailed questionnaires were used to collect data in this descriptive study of first-year professional physical therapist students (Appendix). A description of the survey development and an assessment of its content validity are provided elsewhere.12,13 Previous research explored the factors that influence the educational aspirations of high school students, those that influence college graduates to persist to graduate education and to choose a particular graduate program, and those that influence college graduates’ academic and career expectations. Those data suggested for use in the survey the factors, besides sex, that might explain physical therapist students’ career
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expectations. These factors included socioeconomic status (SES),14 –18 other demographic characteristics,14,16 student ability,14 –17 and institutional characteristics.17 Questions 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 19 –23, 26 – 29, and 31 were used in this study; some additional items were used in 2 studies previously conducted by this author.12,13 Sample A random sample of 10 accredited physical therapist education programs in the United States (cluster sampling) was drawn from 4 stratified groups: programs in private institutions conferring the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree, programs in private institutions conferring the Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) degree, programs in public institutions conferring the DPT degree, and programs in public institutions conferring the MPT degree. The physical therapist education programs were stratified to ensure the representation of students in both public and private programs and both MPT and DPT degree programs. An explanation of the target sample size is provided in a previously published study.12 Procedure The directors of selected programs were contacted first by mail to provide a brief description of the purpose of the study. Telephone and e-mail follow-up to these directors was done within 2 weeks to elicit their participation. They were offered descriptive data to be generated by the study on the factors that influenced students to choose their program or similar programs and the students’ career expectations following graduation. Program directors who did not respond to the second contact were recontacted via both telephone and e-mail 2 weeks later, and those not responding to the third contact were contacted again 4 weeks later. September 2007
Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Survey questionnaires, along with a cover letter, were mailed to the faculty facilitator approximately 1 week prior to the matriculation date of the program. Because data have shown that even nonfinancial incentives can increase the response rate,19 an assortment of chewing gum was included for the students filling out the survey questionnaires. The faculty contacts were requested to distribute the survey questionnaires to students either during orientation or anytime within the first 2 weeks of the program. Large, self-addressed envelopes with prepaid postage were included in the survey packets to allow faculty members to mail the survey to the faculty facilitator back in groups. Attached to the return envelopes was a form asking the faculty members to indicate the number of students enrolled in the first-year professional class to allow calculation of the response rate. No determination of differences between nonrespondents and respondents could be made. The cover letter for the survey advised the potential respondents that any oral or written study reports would contain only grouped data and that no individual respondents would be identified. Data Analysis Descriptive data compilation included means and standard deviations for continuous data and frequencies and percentages for categorical data. Chi-square analysis was used to test for proportional differences in career expectations between men and women. Asymptotic probabilities were obtained for the chi-square values unless fewer than 5 cases were expected in a cell. For the latter situation, exact probabilities were obtained for the chi-square values whenever possible, because the chi-square distribution may not closely approximate the actual distribution of cases.20 Logistic regression was used to determine whether the odds of career expectations were sigSeptember 2007
nificantly different for men and women when numerous other variables were controlled for. An alpha level of .05 was set for all statistical tests. A total of 12 predictor variables were entered into logistic regression models constructed for the 12 dependent variables related to career expectations. Ten of the dependent variables addressed career expectations of students 10 years following graduation (question 28), and 2 additional dependent variables related to other career expectations (questions 8 and 11). All 10 dependent variables that addressed the students’ career expectations 10 years following graduation were recoded into dichotomous variables (ie, either “agree” or “disagree, neutral, or do not know”) for the logistic regression analyses. The remaining 2 dependent variables also were recoded into dichotomous variables for the logistic regression analyses. For each of the 12 logistic regression models, the 12 predictor variables were entered in 2 steps. Variables entered in the first step of the logistic regression models were those that previous research showed to significantly predict college graduates’ enrollment in graduate school or in particular types of graduate institutions and programs, high school students’ educational aspirations,14 –18,21–33 and medical students’ choice of specialty.1 Variables defined as SES variables were the educational level of students’ parents (questions 19 and 20), parents’ occupational prestige scores (questions 21 and 22), and the source of the majority of financing (recoded into parents’ aid or other) for physical therapist education programs (question 10). Occupations were coded by use of the 1980 Census Occupational Category,34 and the occupational prestige scores assigned to the occupational codes
were those established by the National Opinion Research Center.34 Socioeconomic status is strongly related to educational and career aspirations for high school and college students14,17,18,22–25,27 and choice of specialty for medical students.1 Variables defined as other background characteristics consisted of racial or ethnic identity (recoded into nonwhite or white) and age (questions 14 and 31). Factors that affect graduate students’ enrollment, educational aspirations of college students, and choice of specialty for medical students have been shown to differ by age1,30 and racial or ethnic identity.1,14,16,29 Variables defined as those related to student ability and the attributes of students’ academic institutions (questions 23 and 29) consisted of undergraduate grade point average (GPA), control of a student’s primary undergraduate institution (public or private), and control of the institution in which the student was enrolled in a physical therapist education program (public or private). Student ability factors significantly predict educational aspirations at the graduate27 and undergraduate14 –18,21,22,25 levels and medical students’ choice of specialty.1 Control of medical school (public versus private) also influences medical students’ choice of specialty.1 Undergraduate GPA significantly influences educational aspirations for both graduate and professional programs,29 and Medical College Admission Test scores affect choice of specialty for medical students.1 The variable entered in the second step was sex. There were between 535 and 551 cases with complete data from which to predict the dependent variables, except for plans to obtain an additional degree, for which 316 cases had complete data.
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Table 1. Characteristics of Respondents Variable
Marital status
Men (nⴝ238)
Women (nⴝ678)
n
n
%
%
a
Married
59
25.0
68
14.0
Widowed
0
0.0
4
0.4
Divorced or separated
4
1.7
11
1.6
173
73.3
593
84.0
White
195
84.1
537
80.6
Black
9
3.9
31
4.7
Hispanic
8
3.4
27
4.1
Never married Race
Asian
18
7.8
58
8.7
Native American
1
0.4
4
0.6
Other
1
0.4
9
1.3
No. of dependents None
180
92.3
255
90.4
1
12
6.2
17
6.0
2
3
1.5
4
1.4
0
0.0
6
2.2
Private, DPT
83
34.9
259
38.2
Private, MPT
39
16.4
104
15.3
Public, DPT
69
29.0
230
34.0
Public, MPT
47
19.7
85
12.5
3 or more b
Program type
23 (n⫽912)⫽33.772, P⫽.000. b 2 3 (n⫽916)⫽8.315, P⫽.040. DPT⫽Doctor of Physical Therapy, MPT⫽Master of Physical Therapy.
respondents are summarized in Table 1. Chi-square analysis showed that men were more likely to be married than women and more likely to be enrolled in programs conferring the MPT degree (Tab. 1). Chi-square analysis demonstrated that, 10 years following graduation, significantly larger proportions of men than women expected to own a physical therapist practice, become a faculty member, become a physical therapist manager or administrator, and publish articles in professional journals (Tab. 2). Men also expected to have a higher income in the first year of employment and obtain an additional degree (Tab. 2). Chisquare analysis indicated that significantly larger proportions of women than men expected to be a staff physical therapist 10 years following graduation (Tab. 2). There were no sex differences in students’ expectations of conducting some research, conducting research full time, practicing as a senior staff physical therapist, becoming an active member of APTA, or becoming a board-certified clinical specialist 10 years following graduation (P⬎.05).
a
Results Response Rate Of the 40 program directors solicited to participate in this study, 34 agreed, for a participation rate of 85.0%. Eighteen (53.0%) of the participating programs were in private institutions, and 16 (47.0%) were in public institutions. Nineteen (56.0%) of the participating programs conferred a doctoral degree, and 15 (44.0%) conferred a master’s degree.
of the respondents, and women comprised 678 (74.0%) of the respondents. Students enrolled in public programs comprised 431 (47.0%) of the respondents, and 485 students (53.0%) were enrolled in private programs. Students enrolled in MPT degree programs comprised 275 (29.9%) of the respondents, and students enrolled in DPT degree programs comprised 641 (69.7%) of the respondents.
The overall rate of response to the survey was 78.4%; 919 of 1,172 enrolled first-year professional physical therapist students completed the survey. Men comprised 238 (26.0%)
Bivariate Analyses The mean ages of the men and women were 24.7 years (SD⫽4.5) and 23.3 years (SD⫽3.7), respectively. Other characteristics of the
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Multivariate Analyses Logistic regression showed that, when variables related to SES, other demographic characteristics, and academic factors were controlled for, men had statistically significantly higher odds than women of expecting to own a physical therapist practice, become a faculty member, become a physical therapist manager or administrator, publish articles in professional journals, and have a higher income in the first year of employment (Tab. 3). These logistic regression models accounted for 2.7% to 16.1% of the variance in the dependent variables. The beta coefficients from the logistic regression models are reported as odds ratios in Table 3. An odds ratio of 1 indicates equal odds, and odds ratios of September 2007
Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Table 2. Sex Differences in Career Expectations Career Expectation
Men (nⴝ238)
Women (nⴝ678)
n
%
n
%
135
57.7
268
40.3
Disagree
9
3.8
59
8.9
Neutral
28
12.0
81
12.2
Do not know
62
26.5
257
38.6
Plan to own a physical therapist practice
a
Agree
Plan to be a faculty member
b
Agree
54
23.2
95
14.4
Disagree
63
27.0
184
27.8
Neutral
52
22.3
121
18.3
Do not know
64
27.5
262
39.6
Plan to be a physical therapist manager or administrator
c
Agree
88
37.8
175
26.4
Disagree
28
12.0
128
19.3
Neutral
46
19.7
112
16.9
Do not know
71
30.5
248
37.4
Plan to publish articles in professional journalsd Agree
83
35.5
161
24.2
Disagree
27
11.5
113
17.0
Neutral
49
20.9
102
15.3
Do not know
75
32.1
289
43.5
89
39.4
302
47.1
Plan to be a staff physical therapiste Agree Disagree
52
23.0
96
15.0
Neutral
38
16.8
83
12.9
Do not know
47
20.8
160
25.0
1
0.4
8
1.2
Have a higher income in the first year of employmentf $25,000–$30,000 $31,000–$35,000
8
3.4
40
6.1
$36,000–$40,000
25
10.6
118
17.9
$41,000–$45,000
54
22.8
203
30.8
$46,000–$50,000
70
29.5
153
23.2
$51,000–$55,000
46
19.4
82
12.4
$56,000⫹
33
13.9
52
7.9
0
0.0
3
0.5
Yes
76
52.1
130
35.5
No
70
47.9
236
64.5
Other Obtain an additional degreeg
23 (n⫽899)⫽24.669, P⫽.000. b 2 3 (n⫽895)⫽16.492, P⫽.001. c 2 3 (n⫽896)⫽15.981, P⫽.001. d 2 3 (n⫽899)⫽20.188, P⫽.000. e 2 3 (n⫽867)⫽11.534, P⫽.009. f 2 3 (n⫽896)⫽29.756, P⫽.000. Cells g 2 3 (n⫽512)⫽11.867, P⫽.001. a
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with fewer than 5 cases were expected for this category.
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Table 3. Career Expectation
Odds Ratio
95% Confidence Interval
Do some research 10 y following graduation
1.147
0.767–1.716
Do research full time 10 y following graduation
4.024
0.970–16.699
Practice as a staff physical therapist 10 y following graduation
0.880
0.585–1.324
Practice as a senior staff physical therapist and serve as a mentor 10 y following graduation
1.374
0.870–2.169
Own a physical therapist practice 10 y following graduationa
1.871
1.245–2.810
Become a faculty member 10 y following graduationb
1.937
1.132–3.315
nificantly lower odds than those with a lower undergraduate GPA of expecting to own a physical therapist practice. Compared with students in physical therapist programs in public institutions or in programs that conferred the MPT degree, students in physical therapist programs in private institutions or in programs conferring the DPT degree had significantly higher odds of expecting to become faculty members. Finally, compared with students in programs conferring the MPT degree, student in programs conferring the DPT degree had lower odds of expecting to obtain an additional degree.
Become a physical therapist manager or administrator 10 y following graduationb
1.594
1.033–2.460
Discussion
Be an active member of the American Physical Therapy Association 10 y following graduation
1.037
0.593–1.813
Publish articles in professional journals 10 y following graduationa
1.806
1.169–2.791
Become a board-certified clinical specialist 10 y following graduation
1.027
0.684–1.541
Have a higher income in the first year of employmenta
1.759
1.174–2.636
Obtain an additional degree
1.702
0.985–2.941
Odds Ratios of Men’s Career Expectations to Women’s Career Expectations
a b
P⬍01. P⬍.05.
greater than 1 or less than 1 indicate differences in odds. For example, as shown in Table 3, an odds ratio of 1.027 means that the odds of men and women expecting to become board-certified clinical specialists were about the same, an odds ratio of 1.937 means that the odds of men expecting to become faculty members were about 2 times greater than the odds of women expecting to become faculty members, and an odds ratio of 0.880 means that the odds of men expecting to practice as staff physical therapists were less than the odds of women expecting to practice as staff physical therapists.
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There were several other significant predictors (P⬍.05) in the logistic regression models for several of the dependent variables related to students’ career expectations. Nonwhite students had significantly higher odds than white students of expecting to own a private practice, become a physical therapist manager or administrator, become a boardcertified clinical specialist, have a higher income in the first year of employment, and obtain an additional degree. Older students had significantly higher odds than younger students of expecting to be employed as a researcher. Students with a higher undergraduate GPA had sig-
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Students’ Career Expectations in Comparison With Physical Therapists’ Careers Male students’ expectations of owning practices, managing or administrating practices, becoming faculty members, publishing articles in professional journals, and having higher incomes mirror some of the current sex differences among practicing physical therapists. More men than women currently do own practices,7,10 hold more managerial or administrative positions,6,7 hold more faculty appointments,35 and have higher incomes.6,11 Male students’ expectation of a higher income may be related to some of their other career expectations. Owning a practice, becoming a manager or administrator, and becoming a faculty member generally result in a higher income than practicing as an employed therapist.6,11,35 Sex differences in income expectations also may be related to the anticipation of career patterns associated with family responsibilities. It is possible that, regardless of expected practice setting or position, the men in this study had an expectation of a higher income because of a greater anticipation of full-time continuous employment,6,7,9 whereas women September 2007
Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students anticipated more part-time employment7,9 and more leave time related to family responsibilities.6,7 With 2 exceptions (plan to practice as a staff therapist and plan to obtain an additional degree), sex differences in career expectations were largely consistent between the bivariate and multivariate analyses, even though the variables related to career expectations were recoded into dichotomous variables only for the multivariate analysis. However, it is important to note that many students responded to the queries regarding career expectations with “neutral” or “do not know” (Tab. 2). For some career expectations, as many as one third to one half of the students did not respond with either “agree” or “disagree.” Moreover, lower percentages of male students responded to the queries with “do not know”; therefore, it appears that more male students than female students made decisions about their career paths at the point of entry into educational programs. Female students with unknown career plans may be the most influenced by the implementation of mechanisms to eliminate or reduce barriers to the full range of career options during their professional education. In addition to sex differences, there were also some differences in career expectations between students enrolled in MPT degree programs and those enrolled in DPT degree programs. These differences were the focus of an article previously published in Physical Therapy.12 Students’ Career Expectations in Comparison With Those of Other Health Care Professionals Sex differences in career expectations among physical therapist students not only are similar to sex differences in career activities among physical therapists but also show similarities to those among students September 2007
and clinicians in other historically male-dominated as well as historically female-dominated health professions. Sex differences among physical therapist students in marital status, career expectations, and career activities mirror those of medical students,1,2,36,37 physicians,38 veterinary students,4 veterinarians,4 and nurses.8 In this study, only about 14% of female physical therapist students were married, and more than 90% had no children; therefore, it is unlikely that current family responsibilities accounted for the sex differences in their career plans. However, it is possible that female students anticipate greater future child care or other family responsibilities and, consequently, already constrain some of their career expectations. Minority Students’ Career Expectations Another factor that appears to be associated with divergence in the career expectations of students is racial or ethnic identity. Nonwhite students had higher odds than white students of expecting to own a physical therapist practice, become a manager or administrator, have a higher income in the first year of employment, become boardcertified clinical specialists, and obtain additional degrees. However, nonwhite students had lower odds than white students of expecting to become faculty members or publish articles in professional journals. Although speculative, these findings seem to indicate that nonwhite students have greater career expectations than white students in clinical settings but not in academic settings. Thus, there is evidence of a future potential for increasing the number of minority physical therapists in clinical leadership positions. However, there is also the potential for continued discrepancies between
the number of minority students entering the physical therapist profession and the number of minority physical therapists in core faculty positions. In 2005, minority physical therapist students constituted slightly more than 20% of all students, whereas minority core physical therapist faculty members constituted less than 10% of all core faculty members.35 Implications for Educators and APTA Leaders Despite the fact that physical therapy is a female-dominated profession, the career expectations of women matriculating into professional physical therapist programs already appear to be constrained compared with those of men. These data may be useful for faculty involved in admissions. Some applicants may have already formed strategies for balancing career and current or future family responsibilities. However, discussion of this topic during preapplication visits or during the application process may heighten some students’ awareness that strategies to achieve a balance between career and family responsibilities may offer students the greatest future career options. For faculty involved in physical therapist education programs, it seems to be crucial to study strategies that promote the full range of career activities for female students and to implement these strategies during their professional education. Because previous research suggested that women in physical therapy often place a high value on the balance between career and family responsibilities in defining professional success,7,39 strategies to achieve such a balance may be the ideal intervention to introduce early in women’s professional education. As the career expectations and career activities of women in physical
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students therapy appear to mirror those of women in historically maledominated health care professions, it is unlikely that a shift in the sex distribution will affect the career expectations or career paths of women in physical therapy. Moreover, if the sex distribution remains about the same, the career expectations and career activities of women in physical therapy will have an overall stronger influence on the professional goals of APTA than will those of men. Thus, it is imperative that physical therapist educators and APTA leaders closely examine the career development of women as students and clinicians. Limitations Physical therapist students’ expectations of future family responsibilities were not assessed; therefore, associations between sex differences in career expectations and sex differences in family responsibility expectations are purely speculative. There was no determination of any differences between respondents and nonrespondents. Furthermore, about 375 respondents who provided incomplete data were excluded from the multivariate analysis. Substantial differences between respondents and nonrespondents or between respondents with and respondents without complete data may cause study results to be poorly representative of the general population of physical therapist students. Additionally, the test-retest reliability of students’ responses on the questionnaires was not assessed. Recommendations Because the predictor variables explained no more than 16.1% of the variance in the variables related to career expectations, further studies, both qualitative and quantitative, will be important for identifying other factors that were not included in this study but that are predictive of students’ career expectations. Par1206
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ticularly important for further study are factors related to expected future family responsibilities and their association with career expectations. Students’ career expectations were examined prior to the influence of their professional curriculum. It would be illuminating to survey students both at the beginning and at the end of their professional education to study the effect of the physical therapist educational curriculum on students’ career expectations. As APTA continues to monitor women’s careers, future investigations are imperative. Studies are needed to assess the effects on women’s career expectations and actual career status of particular programs, resources, and educational activities designed to eliminate barriers or to advance the careers of women in physical therapy. Furthermore, the effects of preprofessional versus postprofessional introduction of programs, resources, and educational activities designed to eliminate barriers or to advance the careers of women in physical therapy are worthy of future investigation.
Conclusion Women’s career development in female-dominated professions rather than in male-dominated professions may have greater influence on a professional organization’s goals. Physical therapist students just beginning their professional education already exhibit sex differences in career expectations. Therefore, physical therapist educators must determine whether and to what degree strategies shown to reduce barriers to women’s career development influence career expectations of physical therapist students. It is possible that the introduction of these strategies during students’ professional education is more influential than the implementation of such strategies after entry into the profession.
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The author acknowledges Philo A Hutcheson, PhD, and Marcia J Pearl, PT, PhD, of Geogria State University for their guidance during this research project. The author also gratefully acknowledges Marie J Murray for her editorial assistance. The Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects of Georgia State University approved the study. This article was derived from the author’s dissertation completed in partial fulfillment of her doctoral degree at Georgia State University. This research was presented at the American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting; February 14 –18, 2007; Boston, Mass. This article was submitted September 22, 2006, and was accepted May 4, 2007. DOI: 10.2522/ptj.20060285
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20 Agresti A, Finlay B. Statistical Methods for the Social Sciences. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall; 1997. 21 Manski CF, Wise DA. College Choice in America. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press; 1983. 22 Anderson CA, Bowman MJ, Tinto V. Where Colleges Are and Who Attends. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Book Co; 1972. 23 Astin AW. Who Goes Where to College? Chicago, Ill: Science Research Associates Inc; 1965. 24 Delaney AM. Parental income and students’ college choice process: research findings to guide recruitment strategies. Paper presented at: Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research; May 17–20, 1988; Minneapolis, Minn. 25 Boatwright MA, Ouimet JA, Middleton T. Can high-choice college set be linked to college-of-enrollment? College and University. 1999;75:23–29. 26 Hossler D. What really counts: an investigation of the factors associated with the perceived importance of college attributes among high school students. Paper presented at: Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education; October 31–November 3, 1991; Boston, Mass. 27 Ethington CA, Smart JC. Persistence to graduate education. Research in Higher Education. 1986;24:287–303. 28 Weiler WC. Expectations, undergraduate debt and the decision to attend graduate school: a simultaneous model of student choice. Economics of Education Review. 1994;13:29 – 41. 29 Hearn JC. Impacts of undergraduate experiences on aspirations and plans for graduate and professional education. Research in Higher Education. 1987;27:119 –141.
30 Kallio RE. Factors influencing the college choice decisions of graduate students. Research in Higher Education. 1995; 36:109 –125. 31 Olson C. Is your institution user-friendly? Essential elements of successful graduate student recruitment. College and University. 1992;67:203–214. 32 Malaney GD. Why students pursue graduate education, how they find out about a program, and why they apply to a specific school. College and University. 1987; 62:247–258. 33 McClain D, Vance B, Wood E. Understanding and predicting the yield in the MBA admissions process. Research in Higher Education. 1984;20:55–76. 34 National Opinion Research Center (1998). 1980 Census Occupational Category. Available at: http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/ GSS/rnd1998/appendix/occu1980.htm. Accessed July 31, 2002. 35 2005 Fact Sheet: Physical Therapist Education Programs. Alexandria, Va: American Physical Therapy Association; 2005. 36 Lieu TA, Schroeder SA, Altman DF. Specialty choices at one medical school: recent trends and analysis of predictive factors. Acad Med. 1989;64:622– 629. 37 Brotherton SE. The relationship of indebtedness, race, and gender to the choice of general or subspecialty pediatrics. Acad Med. 1995;70:149 –151. 38 Pana AL, McShane J. Gender influences on career opportunities, practice choices, and job satisfaction in a cohort of physicians with certification in sports medicine. Clin J Sport Med. 2001;11:96 –102. 39 Raz P, Jensen GM, Walter J, Drake LM. Perspectives on gender and professional issues among female physical therapists. Phys Ther. 1991;71:530 –540.
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Appendix. Survey Instrumenta 1.
In total, to how many physical therapist programs did you apply for this year?
2. a. How many physical therapist programs you applied to were: in public (state) institutions? in private institutions? b. How many physical therapist programs you applied to were: Master of Physical Therapist (MPT) programs? Doctor of Physical Therapist (DPT) programs? MPT programs expected to transition to DPT programs before your graduation? 3.
How many physical therapist programs accepted you for this year’s entering class?
4. a. How many physical therapist programs that accepted you were: in public (state) institutions? in private institutions? b. How many physical therapist programs that accepted you were: Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) programs? Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs? MPT programs expected to transition to DPT programs before your graduation? 5. How far is your physical therapist program from what you consider to be your permanent home address? (Check one.) 0–9 miles 50–249 miles 500–999 miles 10–49 miles 250–499 miles 1,000⫹ miles 6.
How long ago did you decide to become a physical therapist?
7. What other careers did you consider before deciding to become a physical therapist? 8. Do you plan to obtain any additional degree(s) after graduating from physical therapist school? If no or undecided, skip to Question 10. Yes No Undecided 9. If yes, which degree you plan to obtain? (Check all that apply.) PhD EdD (Doctor of Education) Postprofessional DPT, DSc, etc (Clinical Specialty Degree for Physical Therapists) Transition DPT (entry-level DPT for physical therapists with an MPT) MBA (Master of Business Administration) Other, please specify 10. Which source will contribute the majority of financing for your physical therapist education? (Check one.) My parents’ aid My spouse’s aid Employment during physical therapist school Student loans Personal savings Graduate assistantship Grants/scholarships Other, (please specify) 11. Your expected full-time income ($) for your first year of employment as a physical therapist is: $25,000–30,000 $41,000–45,000 $56,000⫹ $31,000–35,000 $46,000–50,000 Other, (please specify) $36,000–40,000 $51,000–55,000 12. Your estimated family income ($) last year was: $19,000 or less $40,000–$59,000 $20,000–$39,000 $60,000–$79,000 13. Sex 14.
Male
$80,000-$99,000 $100,000–119,000
$120,000⫹
Female
Age (Continued)
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Appendix. Continued If you were accepted into more than one physical therapist program, continue with Question 15. If not, skip to Question 18. 15. Please rate the importance of each of the following considerations for your decision to attend the program of your choice. (Circle your rating.) Unimportant
Neutral
Important
Deciding Factor
a. Location of program
1
2
3
4
b. Cost of program
1
2
3
4
c. Length of program
1
2
3
4
d. Degree conferred by program
1
2
3
4
e. Program start date
1
2
3
4
f.
1
2
3
4
g. US News & World Report’s national ranking of program
1
2
3
4
h. Availability of financial aid
1
2
3
4
i.
Size of physical therapist class
1
2
3
4
j.
Reputation of faculty
1
2
3
4
k. Opinion of spouse, parent(s) or guardian(s)
1
2
3
4
l.
Reputation of program
1
2
3
4
m. Clinical sites offered by program
1
2
3
4
n. Size of institution offering program
1
2
3
4
o. Campus environment
1
2
3
4
p. Positive interaction with faculty
1
2
3
4
q. Positive interaction with students
1
2
3
4
r. Marketability of degree from institution
1
2
3
4
s. Licensure exam pass rate of graduates
1
2
3
4
t.
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
4
Curriculum offered by program
Number of prerequisites
u. Accreditation status of program v. Other(s), please specify
16. Of the items listed in Question 15 above, which were overall the three most important factors for your decision to attend the program of your choice? (Please enter the letter from question 15 above into the appropriate box below.) Most important Second most important Third most important 17. In choosing the physical therapy program you enrolled in, obtaining the DPT degree was: (Check one.) a deciding factor an important factor a neutral factor an unimportant factor (Continued)
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Appendix. Continued 18. Following is a series of items that may characterize your expectations for physical therapist education and practice in comparison with those of other health professionals. Please rate your agreement with the items by using the following scale and circling your responses. DⴝDisagree
NⴝNeutral
AⴝAgree
DKⴝDo not Know
I will practice with the same degree of independence as a physician.
D
N
A
DK
I will practice with the same degree of independence as other nonphysician health professionals, such as clinical psychologists, chiropractors, and podiatrists.
D
N
A
DK
My practice will be as prestigious as that of a physician.
D
N
A
DK
My practice will be as prestigious as that of other nonphysician health care professionals such as clinical psychologists, chiropractors, and podiatrists.
D
N
A
DK
The physical therapist program in which I am enrolled is as lengthy and difficult as medical school is for a physician.
D
N
A
DK
The physical therapist program in which I am enrolled is as lengthy and difficult as the programs in which other nonphysician health professionals, such as clinical psychologists, chiropractors, and podiatrists, are enrolled.
D
N
A
DK
19. Highest education level of your father (if applicable) High school diploma or less Some college or Associate’s degree Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree Doctorate (eg, PhD, MD, JD, DDS) Not applicable
20. Highest education level of mother (if applicable) High school diploma or less Some college or Associate’s degree Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree Doctorate (eg, PhD, MD, JD, DDS) Not applicable
21.
Your father’s occupation (if applicable)
22.
Your mother’s occupation (if applicable)
23.
At which institution did you complete the greatest amount of your undergraduate course work? Undergraduate major?
24. Associate’s
25. Highest earned degree
Bachelor’s
Master’s
PhD or EdD
Other (please specify) 26. Marital status 27.
Married
Widowed
Divorced or Separated
Never married
Excluding yourself, how many financial dependents (children and others) do you have? (Continued)
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Sex Differences in Career Expectations of PT Students Appendix. Continued 28. Following is a series of items that may characterize your career plans 3 years and 10 years following graduation from physical therapist school. Please rate your agreement with the items by using the following scale and circling your responses. (Circle responses for 3 years following graduation to the left of the items and circle responses for 10 years following graduation to the right of the items.) DⴝDisagree
NⴝNeutral
AⴝAgree
DYKⴝDo Not Yet Know
THREE years following graduation
TEN years following graduation
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to do some research.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to do research full time.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to practice as a staff physical therapist.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to practice as a senior staff physical therapist and serve as a mentor for other therapists.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to own a private physical therapist practice.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to be a faculty member.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to be a physical therapist manager or administrator.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to be an active member of the American Physical Therapy Association.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to publish articles in professional journals.
D
N
A
DYK
D
N
A
DYK
I plan to be a board-certified clinical specialist.
D
N
A
DYK
29. What was your overall undergraduate college/university cumulative grade point average (GPA)? below 2.0 2.0–2.49 2.50–2.99 3.0–3.49
3.5 and above
30. Admissions Test Scores. (Please provide only those scores that were required for application to physical therapist programs.) GRE Verbal Quantitative Analytical MAT 31. Your racial/ethnic identity is: (Check all that apply.) White Black Hispanic Other, please specify
Asian
Native American
Thank you so much for your participation. Your time and effort are appreciated and will contribute to knowledge of physical therapist students and physical therapist education programs. a Reprinted with permission of the Education Section of the American Physical Therapy Association from: Johanson MA. Factors influencing professional Master of Physical Therapy and Doctor of Physical Therapy students’ program selection. Journal of Physical Therapy Education. 2004;18(2):9 –21.
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