Professional values: A case study of professional students in a polytechnic

Abstract

This is an intensive study of students on a three-year Surveying degree course at a polytechnic. The degree gives exemption from the examinations of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The central task of the study was to define the content of the group culture, and to outline the socialisation process by which it is acquired. This involved ascertaining whether there is something which could be called the culture of the surveying profession, or at least the culture of the students in that profession, and, if so, to identify and examine the component parts of this culture. The relationship between student culture and examination success was considered to see whether there was a link between integration into the culture and examination success, and, further, whether examination success is a predictor of later success in the profession. Finally, it was hoped to show the way in which student culture changes throughout the experience of the course.¹