Health sciences graduates: perception of their professional training and job placement.

Background: The follow-up of health sciences graduates is relevant due to the commitment of universities to train professionals who contribute to solve the country's health problems. The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) has health sciences graduates who join the workforce every year.

Objective: To identify the perception of health sciences graduates regarding the curriculum and their incorporation into the labor market from 1994 to 2015, and compare it according to the degree program and campus.

Material and methods: Observational, cross-sectional, comparative, quantitative study. The sample of 26,866 graduates was obtained from information of three decades of the institutional questionnaire for graduates applied by the General Directorate of Planning of the UNAM.

Results: Most graduates were females (68.4%), with admission to the degree course at between 19 and 20 years of age (65.4%). At least 47% had a job; incorporation into the labor market depended on not having an income, a higher grade point average, not having presented extraordinary exams, or failed subjects, among others.

Conclusions: Adequate job insertion is associated with starting the degree course at age 18, having financial support, having an average of 8.1 or higher and perceiving low academic and teaching training.