Examination of Career-Related Stress in Senior Students of Health Sciences Departments

Abstract

Introduction: University students encounter many stressors related to academic issues, financial concerns, social relations, and career planning during university years, however, among all these, students reported career-related issues at the top. Aim: The study aims to examine the career-related stress of undergraduate students in health sciences departments. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted with 332 senior students in a private university in Istanbul between February-March 2020. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form and the Career Stress Inventory. Results: 84.0% of them were from the Health Sciences Faculty 81.0% of the students willingly chose their department, and 57.8% wanted to work actively in the same field after graduation. While planning their professions, 51.2% were motivated by successful people/professors in their field, 48.5% selected and their career choices based on their wishes and interests. The students' Career Stress Inventory mean score was 46.5±17.7. Conclusion: Students pursuing health sciences are stressed about their careers. Furthermore, it was discovered that there was such a significant difference according to socioeconomic status, choosing the profession themselves, and not having career counseling from the career center.