Would you choose an academic career? Views of current dental clinical academic trainees

To determine the views of current dental clinical academic trainees regarding their current posts.

Online questionnaire emailed to 51 dental academic trainees. Survey results were collected over a six-week period. Eighteen closed statement questions were included using a five-point scale from 'strongly agree' to 'strongly disagree'. All questions had a section for open text comments.

The response rate for the survey was 73%. A total of 38% were male and 62% female. Just under half of the sample (43%) had a higher teaching qualification. The majority of trainees were from oral surgery (22%), closely followed by restorative and dental public health (both 14%). The main reason trainees stated for choosing an academic post was to be involved in research (68%). The majority of dental clinical academic trainees would recommend a career in academia.

The majority of dentistry's academic trainees (73%) would recommend an academic career to their peers, a positive change in the culture of modern clinical academia.