Abstract
Health experts have cited the fact that the nation is ill prepared to have a linguistically and culturally competent healthcare workforce to meet the needs of its growing diverse ethnic communities. To meet a long-term goal of preparing Hmong youths today to enter the healthcare field, it is imperative to examine the perception and academic aptitude of young Hmong people to gage their readiness to enter the healthcare field. This exploratory research project examined the perceptions and aspirations of 30 Hmong students through from middle and high schools in the Sacramento City Unified School District who are interested in entering healthcare careers. Participants had strong aptitude for math and science courses. Hmong girls were more apt to choose a health related field than Hmong boys and having a father who attended college had some association to participants choosing a health-related major in college.