A generalist or a specialist?
The models included adjustment for previously demonstrated associations of rural background and generalist vs specialist career intention on ultimate intended practice destination.
For urban background students, a generalist practice intention, being from lower IRSAD deciles, and both lower academic entry scores and interview scores remained predictive of intention to practice rurally.
(Model included gender, rural background, preference for RCS, generalist intent, rural practice interest and self-efficacy).
Gender, rural background and RCS preference, generalist intent, interest and self-efficacy were included in the models as applicable.
Self-efficacy as a predictor in addition to rural background, rural training, rural and generalist intent has been used in an index to predict rural career choice.
We have also observed that intention to practice rurally was associated with being female, being older, being from the lower socio-economic deciles, being from a Government vs independent school background and having an intention for generalist vs specialist practice.
More than half (57%) of employers stated that they value both highly specialized researchers and those with a broader background, with 24% saying that they prefer generalists and 12% preferring specialists.
Data from the entry questionnaires for the first 3 cohorts from 2005 to 2007 have already been reported in relation to factors predictive of a student's intention to practice rurally after graduation [ 17, 18] with the strongest predictors being an intention to generalist rather than specialist practice, older age and coming from a rural residential background.
