Seekers, Finders, Settlers, and Stumblers: Identifying the Career Paths of Males in the Genetic Counseling Profession

Abstract

Genetic counseling is a female-dominated profession, with 96% of counselors self-identifying as female. Research suggests gender diversification benefits healthcare professionals and the populations they serve. Therefore, this study explored how men choose a genetic counseling career, associations between career satisfaction and their career entry dynamics and experience levels, and differences due to experience level in how they decide on this profession. Twenty-five novice, experienced, or seasoned male counselors and 8 male genetic counseling students participated in semi-structured phone interviews. Interpretive content and cross-case analyses of interview data were informed by Simpson's "Seekers, Finders, and Settlers" theory describing career entry dynamics of men in non-traditional (i.e., female-dominated) fields. Results revealed 13 interviewees were Seekers, who initially knew they wanted a career in genetic counseling, actively chose the profession, and were satisfied with their decision. Eleven were Settlers, who had tried different, traditional jobs, with limited satisfaction before actively finding and choosing genetic counseling. Two were Finders, who discovered genetic counseling while in the career decision making process and made a passive choice to pursue it as they had no feasible, satisfactory alternative. Seven men fit a new category, we termed "Stumblers," who were in another career and satisfied, but changed to genetic counseling after happening to hear about it. Prevalent themes pertaining to participants' experiences in the career include desire for a multidisciplinary career; lack of a priori knowledge of genetic counselor roles; late exposure to the profession; and varied perceptions of being in a non-traditional career. There were few differences due to experience level and career satisfaction was high across the sample. Results suggest earlier exposure to the career and availability of detailed descriptions of its multidisciplinary nature may increase the number of males in the profession.

Are providers prepared for genomic medicine: interpretation of Direct-to-Consumer genetic testing (DTC-GT) results and genetic self-efficacy by medical professionals

“…Gender ratios were significantly skewed ( p <.01) towards females both in the total (19.7% male and 80.3% female) and between groups. This may be due to sampling professions which are majority female: genetic counselors (96% of the field is female [47]), nurse practitioners (88% female [48]), and physician assistants (63% female [49]). Combined, these three groups accounted for 72.4% of the surveyed professions.…”

Undergraduate Student Perceptions and Awareness of Genetic Counseling

“…These features may include the types of roles available within and outside of patient care, typical hours, and average salary. Previous research asserts that factors outside of gender discrepancy are likely to play a role in male interest and recruitment to the field (Chen et al ; Kopesky et al ). However, the number of females in the field was still the biggest area of discrepancy between male and female ratings, and it appears that this is a deterrent for at least some males.…”

“…These features may include the types of roles available within and outside of patient care, typical hours, and average salary. Previous research asserts that factors outside of gender discrepancy are likely to play a role in male interest and recruitment to the field (Chen et al 2017;Kopesky et al 2011).…”

Genetic Counseling in Middle School Science Club: A Pilot Study

“…This one-time, 40-minute experience is limited in its ability to provide a life-long impact on students' future career choices; although, one other theory on career development, the Happenstance Learning Theory, highlights the importance of seemingly random events in the process of choosing ing students revealed a general lack of awareness and subsequent late introduction to the field. This suggests the number of male GCs could be influenced by earlier exposure to the profession (Chen et al, 2017). This pilot study sought to determine the degree to which participation in a single, experiential lesson about the parts of a genetic counseling visit could impact the awareness of and interest in genetic counseling as a viable career option for sixth-grade students in a science club.…”