Association between research exposure and medical specialization choices among medical students and trainees in Saudi Arabia: A cross sectional study

Research exposure may shape specialty choice, but how its timing, duration, and perceived importance connect to career decisions is not well understood, particularly in Saudi Arabia. This study examined that link between medical students, interns, and junior residents in Saudi Arabia and the perceived high research impact on career decisions and identified factors affecting their prediction.

A cross-sectional survey conducted in Saudi Arabia in 2025, recruited 286 participants through convenience and snowball sampling. The questionnaire covered demographics, research experience, publication output, mentorship quality, and specialty preferences. The main outcome was whether research had high or low impact on career decisions. Association between the level of impact of research exposure on medical specialization choices and participants' sociodemographic and research-related characteristics was examined using the Chi-square test for categorical variables and the Mann-Whitney U test for continuous variables.

Of 286 participants, 55.2% were female, 47.6% were interns, and 26.2% rated research as highly influential in their choice of specialty. General surgery was the most preferred specialty (16.4%), followed by family medicine (7.7%) then pediatrics, ophthalmology, neurology, and other specialties (each 6.3%). The top influencing factors were research experience, mentor influence, and financial prospects. Male gender, longer research duration (≥6 months), and meaningful research experience correlated with greater impact in bivariate analysis (P < 0.05). After adjustment, only significant research experience and research involvement exceeding 6 months remained independent predictors.

One in four trainees saw research as a genuine driver of specialty choice, with meaningful research experience and research involvement of more than 6 months as the only independent predictors. Embedding structured research and mentorship into the curriculum rather than leaving it to extracurricular chance may better support career decisions.