Gerontological training programs offered by Latin American universities: Number, characteristics, and disciplinary contents

Abstract

One of the challenges of population aging is to ensure that there are enough trained professionals to meet the changing, specific needs of aging populations. The aim of this study was to describe the number, geographical distribution, and general characteristics of gerontological training programs offered by Latin American universities and to analyze their disciplinary content and the degree of similarity among programs. One hundred undergraduate and postgraduate programs with gerontological content were found to be offered by Latin American universities. Information on the institutional affiliation, academic level, management, length, and content of the programs was analyzed. Descriptive statistics were run and content analysis was performed on the programs’ syllabuses to address the objectives of the study. Results show that despite being a relatively young region of the world, the majority of Latin American universities offer gerontological programs. However, the nature of this course offering seems to be quite diverse across countries. Moreover, the analysis of the programs’ disciplinary content indicates that the program providers take a multidisciplinary approach to gerontology. The great diversity of programs and their multidisciplinary contents suggest a low degree of standardization of gerontological training in Latin America.