Tracer study on the employment status of BSPT graduates of St. Dominic College of Asia

SDCA Journal of Physical Therapy, Volume 3, June 2022 ISSN 2815-164X 7 Tracer study on the employment status of BSPT graduates of St. Dominic College of Asia Naizel-Lyn P. De Guzman*, Alex Yahwhel Logronio Physical Therapy Department, School of Health Science Professions, St. Dominic College of Asia, Bacoor, Cavite, Philippines Abstract Tracer studies help gather information from different graduates, usually to track changes at the level of each person. This tracer study determined the employment status of graduates from the Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy (BSPT) program at St. Dominic College of Asia (SDCA). A Google survey was made by the researchers and was shared through social media. Out of 76 graduates, only nine alumni members from the years 2018 to 2021 became respondents of the study. Results show that most of the people passed the local licensure examinations, are working in their home country, and are employed in physical therapy profession. The study also shows that it is difficult to track graduates and that schools need to stay in touch with alumni and help them grow in their careers. Keywords: Tracer study; Employment status; Graduates; Physical therapy education; Alumni tracking. To cite this article: De Guzman, N. L. P., & Logronio, A. Y. (2022). Tracer study on the employment status of BSPT graduates of St. Dominic College of Asia. SDCA Journal of Physical Therapy, 3, 7-11. Introduction Tracer studies are methods to see if academic programs have been helpful to students and the job market and to improve the quality of the programs enrolled in the school. They also provide schools with important information about how well they prepare students for jobs, which helps them decide and improve better (Schomburg, 2016; Teichler, 2017). These studies can also help them understand whether graduates have the skills needed to work both in their own country and in other places (Helyer & Lee, 2014; Okolie et al., 2019). The demand for skilled physical therapists is growing because of an aging population, and more people have recognized the value of rehabilitation services (Arnadottir et al., 2021; Cichy et al., 2017). In the Philippines, physical therapy education is designed to develop professionals who can address these healthcare needs (Gorgon et al., 2013). However, a major issue is the “brain drain,” where trained physical therapists leave the country for better job opportunities and higher salaries (Grafton & Gordon, 2019; Jesus et al., 2018). There are several ways to know if the vision of the department provides outstanding physical therapy education. One way is tracing where the graduates have been doing now. Most physical therapy students have the dream to work outside of the country for a high salary, wherein the profession has been greatly appreciated and given importance in the medical field as part of the healthcare system. To see if the program is effective in helping the workforce, it is important to follow the careers of its graduates. Tracer studies are a standard way for colleges to get feedback on program quality, how well students find jobs, and to guide future planning (Nudzor & Ansah, 2020; Sano et al., 2018). SDCA Journal of Physical Therapy, Volume 3, June 2022 ISSN 2815-164X 8 The easiest way to get track of the Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy (BSPT) graduates of St. Dominic College of Asia is connecting through social media. According to the statistics of graduates provided by the Registrar’s Office, the total number of graduates is 76. Reaching graduates is a huge challenge for the researchers, as the researchers did not know about the whereabouts of the students. Until now, there is not enough organized data about where SDCA’s BSPT graduates are and how they are doing professionally. This lack of data makes it difficult for the department to know if the program’s goals are successfully reaching students, understand the licensure examination success rates of the graduates, and describe if they are working locally or abroad. This study aims to fill the gap by looking at the progress of SDCA's graduates of Physical Therapy. This study determined the employment profile of SDCA BSPT graduates from batches 20182021, specifically: • The demographic profile of the respondents by batch year. • The performance in local licensure examinations. • The employment status, including job relevance and geographical location. Methodology This study used a descriptive tracer method about the employment status of the BSPT graduates from St. Dominic College of Asia. There were 76 graduates from four different batches or years (2018 to 2021). Out of these, nine people agreed to answer the survey. A survey was sent through social media group chats to ensure more people could see it. Using online platforms for collecting data is now common in tracer studies because it is cheaper and can reach people who are far away (Sanchez & Diamante, 2017). Although this method is simple, few responses were received compared to using official tracking systems, which might provide a better understanding of the graduates’ current situation. The study used a descriptive-quantitative approach to determine about the current professional status of the graduates. This type of study assesses the characteristics and patterns of a group at a particular time, without changing any variables. A convenience sampling method was chosen, which means that people who were easy to reach and wanted to take part in the study were selected as participants. An online survey was conducted to collect data through Google Forms, which had multiple-choice questions divided into three parts: • Demographic and Academic Information: Year they graduated. • Professional Licensure: Questions about taking and passing local licensing examinations. • Employment and Career Development: Questions about their current job status, whether their work relates to physical therapy and where they currently work. The survey link was shared in an alumni social media group chat, which was done because it is cost-effective, and the method was easy and affordable to conduct. The data collection happened between November and December 2021. Descriptive statistics were used with frequency and percentage distribution. Results were made into a tabular form to make the findings clearer for each variable. SDCA Journal of Physical Therapy, Volume 3, June 2022 ISSN 2815-164X 9 Results and Discussion Table 1. Employment status of BSPT graduates Category Finding Frequency Percentage Batch Representation Batch 2018 4 44.4% Batch 2019 2 22.2% Batch 2020 2 22.2% Batch 2021 1 11.1% Local Licensure Exams (Took the exam) Yes 7 77.8% No 2 22.2% Local Licensure Exams (Passed the exam) Yes 6 66.7% No 3 33.3% Employment Status (Currently working) Yes 8 88.9% No 1 11.1% Employment Status (Related to physical therapy) Yes 6 66.7% No 3 33.3% Employment Status (Working in the Philippines) Yes 8 88.9% No 1 11.1% Table 1 reveals the employment status of BSPT graduates. Out of 76 graduates, nine (9) answered the survey, which means only 11.8% responded. There were four groups of graduates in responses, with the 2018 group having the most people and the 2021 group the lowest. In terms of licensure examination, most people who responded, 77.8%, took the local physical therapy board exam. 66.7% of the respondents passed the local licensure exam. When it comes to employment, 88.9% of the graduates are now working, and all of them are employed in the Philippines. However, 33.3% of them are working in jobs that are not connected to physical therapy. The same thing happens with other health professions in the Philippines too. A lot of graduates want to work overseas, but they end up staying and working locally. This is probably because there are not many options for getting a license to work abroad, money issues, and slow processes for getting work permits overseas (Castro-Palaganas et al., 2017; Ortiga & Macabasag, 2021). Most BSPT graduates are already working, with the majority are in physical therapy. A high number of people passed the local licensure exams (68.7%), but more academic support is needed in preparing for these tests. Results show that having good review programs, strong connections with alumni, and international qualifications can make a big difference in passing exams and getting jobs (Altbach & De Wit, 2018; Verma et al., 2018). Skills that improve employability and global awareness can better prepare graduates for both local and international work (Watkins & Smith, 2018). The high employment rate is a good sign, but there is a difference in how closely their jobs are related to physical therapy. One-third of these jobs are not related to physical therapy, which is a concern because some graduates did not pass the board exam and were not allowed to practice as physical therapists in the Philippines under Republic Act 5680 or “An Act Creating the Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists and Occupational Therapists”. This could be due to the competitiveness of the job market or a change in career goals. It is revealed that all employed respondents have been working in the Philippines in contrast with the belief that many professionals leave the country for better opportunities. This might be because of the small sample size or a recent trend during the pandemic and changes in immigration laws. This may also be because of financial problems or because they choose to gain work experience right after graduation. This study encountered some major limitations that affect the generalizability and reliability applied to the graduates of BSPT in the institution: SDCA Journal of Physical Therapy, Volume 3, June 2022 ISSN 2815-164X 10 • There was low response rate, with only 11.8% of the graduates (9 out of 76) taking part in the study, which is not enough to show the proper representation of all PT graduates. • Convenience sampling caused selection bias, which might have made the results not show the whole group. • Self-reported data from the respondents could be misleading depending on how accurate and honest they were, leading to a social desirability bias. Conclusion and Recommendations This study provides information about BSPT graduates from SDCA who are working after they finish their degrees. Most of them are currently employed and are working as physical therapists. However, since only a small number of people responded, there is a clear need for a more effective way to track and stay in contact with alumni. Having a strong alumni tracking system helps schools figure out which methods are most effective and ensure programs meet quality standards for higher education. The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) in the Philippines encourages universities and higher education institutions to regularly do tracer studies to find out what graduates are doing and make sure their programs stay relevant to the curriculum (Tutor et al., 2019). These systems can help keep physical therapy education up to date and aligned with the needs of the healthcare industry. Most graduates are working locally, but challenges like passing the licensure exam and matching their education with their profession have not been clearly explained. Because of these major limitations, findings should be considered and should not be used to represent all alumni in the study. The institution should create an official alumni database managed by the registrar or a specific alumni team, working together with the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) department to gather data in a uniform and reliable way for future research. Moreover, curriculum should be assessed to look at how graduates (who passed the licensure exam) did compared to national standards to identify areas where the program can give better and active academic support. A follow-up study with more graduates should be accomplished by future researchers. Individual interviews and group discussions must also be conducted to better understand graduates’ career paths, challenges, and achievements. References Altbach, P., & De Wit, H. (2018). Are we facing a fundamental challenge to higher education internationalization? International Higher Education, (93), 2-4. https://doi.org/10.6017/ihe.0.93.10414 Arnadottir, S. A., & Jonsson, B. G. (2021). 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