Student values and preferences: what do they tell us about programme selection?

Allied health professionals are thought to acquire their orientation through professional socialization and education, but it is likely that they share similar values before being admitted to any educational programme. The results of a study involving occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology/audiology students (N = 276) support this contention. The Life Roles Inventory, Vocational Preference Inventory and a student information sheet were the instruments employed. Using discriminant analysis, the results demonstrate that although respondents endorse the same values, the level of that endorsement differs significantly between the three student groups. Similarly, the same Holland Code was generated for each group, but again the level of endorsement for the six primary scales varies in each case. The more allied health educators know about the values and preferences their students endorse, and how they seek to implement them, the better prepared educators should be to recruit, place, teach and counsel them.