Other [NAAHP Advisor] Reflections on Trends in Performance on Board Exams and Admissions in Health Professional Programs

[Mr.Smile12]

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Reflections on Trends in Performance on Board Exams and Admissions in Health Professional Programs
Duc Do, PhD and Anna Ratka, PhD, PharmD, RPh
The Advisor (2025) 45 (1): 09.

Duc Do is at College of Pharmacy, University of Georgia.
Anna Ratka is Independent Researcher/Scholar.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Abstract:​

Performance on national board exam is considered a key indicator of readiness for the entry level practice of graduates from health professional programs and an important measure of program quality. This commentary presents the 2014- 2023 trends in the first-time pass rates on board exams in pharmacy, allopathic and osteopathic medicine, dentistry, physician assistant, physical therapy, and veterinary medicine. The trends in outcomes from board exams are presented in context of admission data.

The 2014-2023 trends in the average national board exam scores on the first attempt varied for seven health professional programs. In pharmacy, the first-time pass rates decreased by almost 17% while in other health professions, the decrease was between 4% and 9%. Trends in board performance seem to reflect trends in admission parameters such as matriculation rate and undergraduate GPA.

Trends in performance on board exams evoked reflections on the impact of efforts associated with admissions on student development and success on board exams.