Online Questionnaire:

Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

Dear Doctor,

My greetings. I hope this mail finds you well.

This online survey is an attempt to gauge job satisfaction of dentists in India.

The survey is so designed such that no personal information is asked to
maintain anonymity, ensuring that all the people involved give truthful
answers. The email id’s which is the only identity will not be revealed.
Therefore I would appreciate if you could take out some time to fill this
simple questionnaire and email it to the address given below:

planetrathnam@yahoo.com

The questionnaire can be filled up and attached to the message and sent. An
additional request I would like to make is to forward this mail to as many of
your friends (who are dentists) as possible.

I would also request dentists who have multiple email addresses to send in
the filled questionnaire through a primary email address to avoid duplication
of data.

I thank you in advance for your valuable time & efforts.

Thank you,

Dr. Arun Rathnam.

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

ONLINE QUESTIONNAIRE

(tick wherever applicable, some questions may require

multiple answers )

Sex Male [ ] Female [ ]

Age 20-30 [ ] 31-40 [ ] 41-50 [ ] 51-60 [

] 60+ [ ]

Marital status Married [ ] Single [ ]

Children 1 [ ] 2 [ ] 3 [ ] 3+
[ ] none [ ]

Career academics [ ] clinic [ ] hospital based [ ]

consultation [ ]

Any other (please specify) ____________________________

Place of Residence: City/ Town:____________________ State:

_________________________

CAREER PARAMETERS

1. What is your degree?

• Bachelor of Dental Surgery [ ]

• Master of Dental Surgery [ ]

2. If you are a specialist what is your speciality?

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

3. What is your job experience after your Graduation / Post graduation?

• 1-3 years [ ]

• 4-6 years [ ]

• 7-9 years [ ]

• 10 + years [ ]

4. What was / is your first choice of specialization in Dentistry?

5. Which speciality in dentistry offers the best career opportunities?

6. Do you have a practice of your own?

• Yes [ ]

• No [ ]

7. Do you feel the effort of putting up your own practice is worth the reward?

• Definitely worth [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• Usually worth [ ]

• Not worth [ ]

• Definitely not worth [ ]

8. What are the career prospects available for Dentists after graduation (B.D.S)?

• Good [ ]

• Average [ ]

• Poor [ ]

9. What is your opinion on the number of dentists available in India?

• The profession is saturated [ ]

• The profession is growing at a healthy pace [ ]

• A lot of dentists are still required [ ]

10.Would you suggest dentistry as a career choice for your relatives, siblings or
children?

• Yes [ ]

• No [ ]

• Don’t know [ ]

11.Are you satisfied with your career choice as a dentist?

• Very satisfied [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• Somewhat satisfied [ ]

• Unsatisfied [ ]

• Unsure [ ]

12.What is the better long term career choice?

• Academics [ ]

• Own clinic [ ]

• Consultations / hospital based [ ]

• Combination of all the above [ ]

13.What is the more lucrative (financially rewarding) career choice?

• Academics [ ]

• Own clinic [ ]

• Consultations / hospital based [ ]

• Combination of all the above [ ]

14.What is the more mentally/ emotionally satisfying career choice?

• Academics [ ]

• Own clinic [ ]

• Consultations / hospital based [ ]

• Combination of all the above [ ]

EDUCATION PARAMETERS

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

15.What is your view on the quality of dental education in India?

• High [ ]

• Medium [ ]

• Low [ ]

• Very low [ ]

16.Do you feel the subjects taught in graduate/ post graduate courses are
adequate to practice and teach dentistry today?

• More than adequate [ ]

• Adequate [ ]

• inadequate [ ]

• very inadequate [ ]

• unsure/ don’t know [ ]

17.The quality of education has ___________ in the last decade, with the start of
numerous private dental colleges in India?

• Improved [ ]

• Remained the same [ ]

• Reduced [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

18.In your view point what is the future of the current students in Dental
schools?

• Good [ ]

• Average [ ]

• Poor [ ]

19.The quality of students joining Dental courses has ____________.

• Improved [ ]

• Remain the same [ ]

• Reduced [ ]

20.In your opinion which part of the country has better Dental schools offering
better education?

• North India [ ]

• South India [ ]

• There is no difference in quality [ ]

21.Do you feel the opportunities to complete post graduation are adequate in
India?

• More than adequate [ ]

• Adequate [ ]

• inadequate [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• very inadequate [ ]

• unsure/ don’t know [ ]

22.What is your opinion on the fee structure of graduate/ undergraduate dental

courses in India?

• Fee charged is exorbitant [ ]

• Fee charged is adequate [ ]

• Fee charged is low [ ]

• Fee charged is very low [ ]

• unsure/ don’t know [ ]

JOB SATISFACTION PARAMETERS

23.What is the average pay scale a fresh graduate earns today?

• Rs 60.000 – 100.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 101.000 – 200.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 201.000-300.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Much more or much less (Specify amount) [ ]________________

24.What is the average pay scale a fresh postgraduate earns today?

• Rs 100.000 – 300.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 301.000 – 500.000 (per annum) [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• Rs 501.000 - 700.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Much more or much less (Specify amount) [ ]________________

25.What is the average pay scale a graduate with 10 years of experience earns
today?

• Rs 100.000 – 300.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 301.000 – 500.000 (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 501.000 – 700.000(per annum) [ ]

• Much more or much less (Specify amount) [ ]________________

26.What is the average pay scale a postgraduate with 10 years of experience

earns today?

• Rs 10 – 18 lacs (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 19 – 27 lacs (per annum) [ ]

• Rs 28 – 36 lacs (per annum) [ ]

• Much more/ much less (Specify amount) [ ]________________

27.If the pay scales of various professions are tabulated (e.g. Lawyers, doctors,
engineers), where are dentists placed?

• At the top of the table [ ]

• In the middle of the table [ ]

• At the lower end of the table [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

28.How many hours do you work in a week?

• > 70 hours

• 60 hours - 69 hours [ ]

• 50 – 59 hours [ ]

• 40 – 49 hours [ ]

• < 40 hours [ ]

29.Does dentistry prove stressful for your personal life?

• Very stressful [ ]

• stressful [ ]

• Stressful sometimes [ ]

• not at all stressful [ ]

30.Dentistry as a profession is associated with a __________ lifestyle.

• luxurious [ ]

• upper class [ ]

• middle class [ ]

• lower class [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

31.The average retirement age in the dental profession is ________.

• 50 - 55 [ ]

• 56 - 60 [ ]

• 61 - 65 [ ]

• 66 - 70 [ ]

• Later/ earlier [ ] specify age ________

32.Please rate job satisfaction as a dentist on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 – lowest score

& 10 – maximum score?

CONTINUING DENTAL EDUCATION& CAREER BREAKS

33.Do you regularly read Dental journals?

• Yes [ ]

• No [ ]

34.What is your opinion on the certificate / training/ hands-on courses offered for
various topics?

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• Very educative & worth the fees charged [ ]

• Educative but costly [ ]

• Non educative [ ]

• Useless [ ]

35.Why should dentists attend conferences?

• They are educative and update your knowledge [ ]

• They help you make contacts [ ]

• They provide material at good prices [ ]

• They are not of much use [ ]

36.Have you ever taken a career break (time when you were not associated with
dentistry in any form)?

• Yes. 0 – 6 months [ ]

• Yes. 7 months – 1 year [ ]

• Yes. 1+ years [ ]

• No [ ]

37.What was the reason for taking a career break?

• Personal choice [ ]

• Rearing children [ ]

• Illness [ ]

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

• In between jobs [ ]

• Further Education [ ]

• Change of career [ ]

I thank all of you for completing the questionnaire. If there are any questions I
should have omitted/ included or any opinions for the questions provided above,
please provide the same in the space provided below.

Thank you.

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 Online Questionnaire:
Job Satisfaction in Dentistry

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