Admission Variables as Predictors of PANCE Scores in Physician Assistant Programs: A Comparison Study Across Universities

Higgins, Rosemary; Moser, Sharon; Dereczyk, Amy; Canales, Roberto; Stewart, Gloria; Schierholtz, Colleen; Ruback, Ted J.; McDaniel, Jane; Rhee, James; Arbuckle, Steve

doi:10.1097/01367895-201021010-00002

Cited by 32 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Contrastingly, the averaged admissions interview score and averaged preceptor evaluation of applicant score were found to be inaccurate and poor indicators of first-time success on the BOC exam, respectively. Similarly, Higgins et al 15 found interview scores to be a predictor of PANCE success for only 2 of the 6 programs included in their study. Therefore, program personnel may consider prioritizing student performance in prerequisite courses followed by general education courses with regard to athletic training admission decisions to help ensure first-time success on the BOC exam and compliance with Standard 11.…”

Section: Secondary Admissions Criteriamentioning

confidence: 77%

Accuracy of Undergraduate Athletic Training Student Performance Factors for Determining Board of Certification Exam First-Time Pass Outcomes

Hobson

Miller

Downs

et al. 2020

Athletic Training Education Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Context There is a lack of current evidence to help athletic training programs identify students poised for first-time Board of Certification (BOC) exam success as a means to ensure compliance with contemporary accreditation standards. Various academic variables have been previously identified as predictors of first-time success; however, these investigations reflect prior versions of the credentialing examination based on what are now obsolete editions of the professional practice analysis. Objective To determine the accuracy of undergraduate athletic training student performance factors as indicators of successfully passing the current version of the BOC exam on a first attempt. Design Casual-comparative (ex–post facto) quasi-experimental. Setting An accredited undergraduate athletic training program. Patients or Other Participants A recent sample of athletic training program graduates (n = 43). Intervention(s) Archived data were collected from student academic records and analyzed. Main Outcome Measure(s) Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis computed the area under the curve (AUC), which was used to determine accuracy of variables. Optimal thresholds for passing the BOC exam on a first attempt were computed for each variable by the index of union method. Results The AUC and associated thresholds for factors were as follows: cumulative grade point average (GPA) upon entry to the major (AUC = 0.67, threshold = 3.20); preprofessional-phase course GPA (AUC = 0.81, threshold = 3.48); averaged admission interview score (AUC = 0.49, threshold = 8.46); averaged preceptor evaluation of applicant score (AUC = 0.53, threshold = 93.88%); unique composite score (AUC = 0.80, threshold = 7.34); cumulative GPA upon graduation (AUC = 0.68, threshold = 3.19); combined math and reading SAT score (AUC = 0.90, threshold = 960); clinical education hours (AUC = 0.61, threshold = 1131.08). Conclusions Preprofessional-phase course GPA provided the greatest accuracy of the secondary admissions criteria; however, the combined math and reading SAT score provided the greatest accuracy of all examined variables. Furthermore, the unique composite score may represent an accurate, all-inclusive indicator of success. Program administrators and athletic training educators may use these outcomes to shape their related programmatic operations.

show abstract

Section: Secondary Admissions Criteriamentioning

confidence: 77%

Accuracy of Undergraduate Athletic Training Student Performance Factors for Determining Board of Certification Exam First-Time Pass Outcomes

Hobson

Miller

Downs

et al. 2020

Athletic Training Education Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Specific to PA programs, while UGPA predicted the probability of attaining a satisfactory level of performance on the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE), both GRE verbal and quantitative scores were also found to positively correlate. [49] A graduate nursing program study revealed that UGPA was predictive of GRE scores and a UGPA of 3.28 predicted higher achievement in academic performance, thus admissions faculty at this program considered waiving the GRE mandate for those students who achieved this threshold. However, after contemplating grade inflation in undergraduate programs, this same graduate school opted to establish a UGPA threshold of 3.50 in order to waive the GRE requirement.…”

Section: Standardized Testsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Admission academic metrics and later success in an accelerated master’s entry program

Doyle

Fahs

Honan

2019

JNEP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Accelerated master’s entry programs for non-nurse college graduates leading to advanced practice, which are both rigorous and fast-paced, utilize academic metrics to evaluate prospective candidates, including GRE scores and GPA levels. Because this program saw an increased rate of failure from the program (with medical-surgical nursing being associated with > 93% of failures), the aim of this study was to examine if either of these metrics were associated with later success in the program.Methods: A retrospective, descriptive study analyzed admission metrics and first year academic performance to determine if any criteria were associated with academic success. Data collected included age, gender, race, ethnicity, GPA, GREs and scores on the seven required courses in the first 25 weeks. T-tests, correlations, ANOVAs and multiple regression were used to determine if any significant relationships existed.Results: Admission data from 333 students revealed no differences in the mean GPA related to academic success. Student who failed out of the program had significantly lower GRE quantitative, verbal, and writing scores. Additionally, quantitative and verbal scores correlated with exam scores on many didactic courses, and explained 25.4% of the variance in the first medical-surgical exam scores (p < .001), with GRE quantitative scores having the most effect.Conclusions: This study demonstrated verbal and quantitative scores were the only predictor of academic success suggesting admission offices should reconsider whether this current trend of omitting GREs is meeting the needs of students, faculty, universities and the public at large.

show abstract

“…Although not in MLS, the topic of certification/licensure exam predictors has been examined extensively by other health professions including but not limited to athletic training, [2][3][4][5] chiropractic, [6][7] dental hygiene, [8][9] physical therapy, [10][11][12][13][14] physician assistant, [15][16][17][18] and nursing. [19][20][21][22] While GPA is one of the most commonly analyzed academic prediction variables, 3,5,[7][8][10][11][13][14][16][17]20,[22][23] these and other studies have considered additional factors such as standardized test scores (ACT, SAT, GRE, etc. ), 5,8,11,17,20,22 general demographics, 3,[17][18]22 pretest results, 7,10 academic performance, 7,1...…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[19][20][21][22] While GPA is one of the most commonly analyzed academic prediction variables, 3,5,[7][8][10][11][13][14][16][17]20,[22][23] these and other studies have considered additional factors such as standardized test scores (ACT, SAT, GRE, etc. ), 5,8,11,17,20,22 general demographics, 3,[17][18]22 pretest results, 7,10 academic performance, 7,16,18,22 clinical rotation duration and performance, 3,14,18 psychological factors, 2,11 and comprehensive program exam scores. 14,16 Reviews of studies related to predicting success in health professions suggest that critical thinking skills are also an area of interest for analysis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[24][25] Specifically, critical thinking abilities have been assessed for their value as a health science or medical program admission screening tool and in predicting academic and certification/licensure exam performance. 9,12,17,21,[26][27][28][29][30] A list of tools utilized in these studies for the quantitation of critical thinking are listed in Table 1. Given the lack of research for both critical thinking skills and ASCP BOC predictors in MLS, it is the intent of the current study to fill that void by investigating the value of critical thinking skills at the time of MLS program admission in predicting ASCP BOC exam success.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Critical Thinking as a Predictor of Certification Exam Performance in Medical Laboratory Science

Solberg

2015

Clin Lab Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The purpose of this study was to examine the value of critical thinking skills in predicting American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Certification (BOC) exam scores for the Medical Laboratory Science (MLS) category. Existing data for undergraduate students in an accredited MLS program during the years of 2009-2012 were examined. Specifically, scores from a Critical Thinking Exercise (CTE) administered during the application process, along with Grade Point Average (GPA), Science Grade Point Average (SGPA), and ASCP BOC exam and subsection scores were analyzed. Results suggest that the CTE is a weak to negligible predictor of ASCP BOC exam performance (r=0.113), while GPA and SGPA are stronger, statistically significant predictors (r=0.358; r=0.428; p<.05). Although critical thinking skills did not significantly predict ASCP BOC exam scores, other implications for their predictive utility exist and are discussed in light of the findings from this and other existing studies within the health professions.

show abstract

Admission Variables as Predictors of PANCE Scores in Physician Assistant Programs: A Comparison Study Across Universities

Cited by 32 publications

References 0 publications

Accuracy of Undergraduate Athletic Training Student Performance Factors for Determining Board of Certification Exam First-Time Pass Outcomes

Accuracy of Undergraduate Athletic Training Student Performance Factors for Determining Board of Certification Exam First-Time Pass Outcomes

Admission academic metrics and later success in an accelerated master’s entry program

Critical Thinking as a Predictor of Certification Exam Performance in Medical Laboratory Science

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About