career anchors assessment: a survey of personnel of vice-chancellor offices in shiraz university of medical sciences

background and objectives: a career anchors consists of jobs that a person holds in order to achieve a professional goal. career anchors development management results in job satisfaction, professional commitment, and higher effectiveness. the purpose of this study was to determine different dimensions of career anchors among in the personnel of vice-chancellor offices of shiraz university of medical sciences.   methods: this cross-sectional study was conducted in 2012. the study sample was 236 personnel of the vice-chancellor offices of shiraz university of medical sciences, selected using ratio estimation method. the 43-item schein's career anchors orientation inventory was used as the study instrument. t-test, anova and spearman coefficient were used for data analysis.   findings: the highest mean score of career anchors was observed in service port (3.28 ± 0.43) and the lowest mean was observed in identity port (2.47 ± 0.5). significant inverse relationships were found between age and work experience in the innovation port. there was also significant difference between genders in service and security ports.   conclusions: the main career anchor was related to services port, which highlights the importance providing quality health care services to the patients. in order to improve work situation it is recommended to hire well-educated managers for job development and provide educational courses for managers and personnel.