Pharmacy Students Motivation, Preparation and Factors Affecting Pursuing Postgraduate Education in Ethiopian University

Figures & data

Table 1 Demographics and Background Characteristics of Respondents

Variables		Interest for PGE		AOR	95% CI	p-value
		Yes, N (%) 244 (62.9)	No, N (%) 144 (37.1)
Age	18–21	124 (50.8)	50 (34.7)	2.105	[0.526–8.429]	0.315
	22–25	113 (46.3)	91 (63.2)	2.623	[0.681–10.099]
	26–30	7 (2.9)	3 (2.1)	1	1
Sex	Male	124 (50.8)	91 (63.2)	1.436	[0.835–2.468]	0.190
	Female	120 (49.2)	53 (36.8)	1	1
Religion	Orthodox	195 (79.9)	112 (77.8)	2.679	[0.855–8.391]	0.184
	Muslim	27 (11.1)	25 (17.4)	3.041	[0.901–10.260]
	Protestant	22 (9.0)	7 (4.9)	1	1
Marital Status	Single	238 (97.5)	140 (97.2)	2.589	[0.87–35.855]	0.181
	Married	4 (1.6)	3 (2.1)	13.823	[0.539–354.794]
	Divorced	2 (0.8)	1 (0.7)	1	1
Level of study	1st Year	60 (24.6)	17 (11.8)	0.274	[0.100–0.751]	0.061
	2nd Year	56 (23.0)	25 (17.4)	0.334	[0.134–0.832]
	3rd Year	51 (20.9)	40 (27.8)	0.689	[0.298–1.597]
	4th Year	47 (19.3)	33 (22.9)	0.597	[0.257–1.386]
	5th Year	30 (12.3)	29 (20.1)	1	1
Region	Amhara	108 (44.3)	69 (47.9)	0.251	[0.078–0.808]	0.007*
	Tigray	13 (5.3)	10 (6.9)	0.167	[0.036–0.783]
	Oromia	26 (10.7)	18 (12.5)	0.574	[0.153–2.150]
	Somalia	2 (0.8)	3 (2.1)	3.212	[0.209–49.469]
	SNNP	16 (6.6)	14 (9.7)	0.377	[0.094–1.504]
	Addis Ababa	70 (28.7)	21 (14.6)	0.141	[0.041–0.485]
	Dire Dawa	9 (3.7)	9 (6.3)	1	1
GPA	1.1–2	5 (2.0)	0 (0.0)	0.000	0.000	0.996
	2.1–3	107 (43.9)	67 (46.5)	0.976	[0.583–1.636]
	3.1–4	132 (54.1)	77 (53.5)	1	1
Was pharmacy your number one choice?	Yes	165 (67.6)	118 (81.9)	3.557	[1.906–6.637]	<0.001**
	No	79 (32.4)	26 (18.1)	1	1
Have You ever been participated in the research?	Yes	87 (35.7)	31 (21.5)	0.551	[0.275–1.107]	0.094
	No	157 (64.3)	113 (78.5)	1	1
Have you ever been in a leadership position?	Yes	86 (35.2)	45 (31.3)	2.864	[1.454–5.642]	0.002**
	No	158 (64.8)	99 (68.8)	1	1
Do you have pharmacy related work experience?	Yes	89 (36.5)	28 (19.4)	0.320	[0.165–0.620]	<0.001*
	No	155 (63.5)	116 (80.6)	1	1
Have you ever got an opportunity to attend a conference related to pharmacy school?	Yes	101 (41.4)	26 (18.1)	0.181	[0.093–0.354]	<0.001**
	No	143 (58.6)	118 (81.9)	1	1

Notes: *Significant at 0.05 levels; **significant at 0.01 levels.

Figure 1 Influence of previous pharmacy-related work experience on interest for PGE.

Figure 2 Influence of previous exposure on pharmacy-related conference on interest for PGE.

Figure 3 Influence of choosing pharmacy as a first choice on interest for PGE.

Figure 4 Influence of previous leadership experience on interest for PGE.

Figure 5 Influence of previous participation in research on interest for PGE.

Table 2 Reason for Choosing Pharmacy as a First Choice (n=283)

Variables	N (%)
A subject teacher at school/college	39 (13.8)
University prospective	49 (17.3)
Radio or TV program about the pharmacy profession	32 (11.3)
My family/relative/friend encouraged me to choose the pharmacy	110 (38.9)
I was influenced by a pharmacist I know, as a role model	24 (8.4)
I was influenced by pharmacy work experience	27 (9.5)
Someone in my family who owns a pharmacy influences me	0 (0)
I wanted to work in a well-respected profession	23 (8.1)
I wanted the job with good career opportunities	41 (14.5)
I wanted a job where I am socially useful	34 (12.0)
I wanted the opportunity for self-employment	31 (11)
I wanted a profession where you can always get a job.	37 (13.1)
I was good at science in school so I wanted to have a carrier in the health care profession where I can work with patients	16 (5.7)
I wanted the opportunity for part-time work	25 (8.8)

Table 3 Pharmacy-Related Experience (n=117)

	N (%)
Community pharmacy	70 (59.8)
Hospital pharmacy	38 (32.5)
Clinical pharmacy	9 (7.7)
Clinical research	0 (0)
Regulation and academic activity	0 (0)
Manufacturing	0 (0)

Table 4 The Focus of Interest, and Level of Preparation and Confidence for Application (n=244)

Interest in Different Types of PGE Programs	N (%)
Clinical pharmacy	108 (44.3)
Pharmacology	38 (15.6)
Analytical chemistry	15 (6.15)
Medicinal chemistry	13 (5.3)
Pharmaceutics	27 (11.1)
Social pharmacy	30 (12.3)
Pharmacoepidemiology	9 (3.4)
Forensic pharmacy	1 (0.4)
Industrial pharmacy	3 (1.2)
Level of preparation for the postgraduate program
Poor	25 (10.2)
Average	64 (26.2)
Neutral	46 (18.9)
Good	66 (27)
Very good	43 (17.6)
Level of confidence for the application process
Poor	22 (9)
Average	53 (21.7)
Neutral	38 (15.6)
Good	110 (45.1)
Very good	33 (13.5)

Table 5 Reasons for Not Pursuing Postgraduate Education (n=144)

Reasons	N (%)
Financial obligations	39 (27.1)
Family obligations	2 (1.4)
Not feeling prepared	20 (13.9)
Lack of information about the application and interview process	44 (30.6)
No contacts to PGE personnel	12 (8.3)
Geographical limitations	8 (5.6)
The belief that grades were not good enough to apply	7 (4.9)
Other graduation options were stressed	2 (1.4)
Afraid of the competition	2 (1.4)
The disappointment of not getting a PGE	0 (0)
Advised that PGE are NOT necessary	0 (0)
Information on options for PGE are not readily available	0 (0)
The emphasis of these programs did not exist in school; not felt to be important	6 (4.2)
Deadlines were too soon to apply to PGE	2 (1.4)