An evaluation of a student led career profiling project to support the exploration of a career in general practice and other specialties

• Published in: BJGP open 2022-09, Vol.6 (3), p.BJGPO.2022.0002
• Main Authors: Gyekye-Mensah, Hannah, Watkins, Arabella, Wenden, Joseph, Horn, Imogen, Beardwood, Jemimah, Jones, Melvyn, Metters, Emma
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: career choice; career guidance; general practice; medical students
• ISSN: 2398-3795; 2398-3795
• DOI: 10.3399/BJGPO.2022.0002

Choosing medical careers is complex but the undergraduate period is formative. St. George's University of London (SGUL) students called for greater careers information. To develop & evaluate students' careers resources. A quality improvement student staff project at SGUL. A "Plan, Do, Study, Act" (PDSA) cycle was completed. For the "Plan" element we surveyed students' career intentions and information preferences. For the "Do" element, video interviews with clinicians and infographic posters were produced and published on SGUL's virtual learning environment. For the "Study" element, feedback questionnaires were thematically analysed using Kirkpatrick's framework. For the "Act" element the model was rolled out across SGUL programmes. (Plan) 79 students ranked interest in specialties, with GP second most popular. Students were unconfident how to pursue careers and wanted more information. (Do) 13 careers videos & infographics were created for 10 specialties. The (Study) questionnaire showed changes across 3 of Kirkpatrick's levels. Level 1 (Response) students found resources helpful & accessible. Level 2 (Learning) students reported increased understanding of careers. Level 3 (Transfer) students planned using checklists and made career comparisons by specialty. Level 4 (Results) students' career choices were not demonstrated but there were tentative proxy measures such as copying and modelling career routes and choices. (Act) involved rolling out and regularly updating resources. This PDSA model enabled development of resources by students mapped to students' needs. We demonstrated changes in relation to students' response, learning and transfer, with tentative suggestions of impact on career choice.