Prepharmacy Years in College and Academic Performance in a Professional Program

Abstract

Objective. This study investigated whether there was a significant difference in the cumulative grade point average (GPA) of individual students at the end of their first 3 professional years in the doctor of pharmacy curriculum as a function of previous years in college. Methods. The cumulative GPA for the first-through third-professional years was calculated for the 2004-2007 graduating classes. Previous college education was classified as 2 years, 3 or more years without a bachelor's degree, and bachelor's degree or higher. Students with 2 years of prepharmacy education were classified as early assurance (EA) versus non-early assurance. Specifically, non-early assurance students were those who transferred in after 2 years but did not participate in the early assurance program. Statistical differences in the cumulative GPA were calculated using MANOVA with repeated measures followed by a LSD Post-Hoc test.Results. Students with a bachelor's degree performed better academically, especially in the first professional year of the program compared to those with other levels of education including those who entered through our EA program. There was a consistent decrease in cumulative GPA during the second-professional year, but no additional change in the third-professional year. Conclusions. Students who obtain a bachelor's degree perform better academically presumably because of previous college experiences.

Predicting Performance in the First-Year of Pharmacy School

“…17,18 Several other studies have found that pharmacy students with bachelor's degrees earned higher GPAs during their first year than did students with less prior education. [19][20][21][22][23][24] The findings reported in Table 3 are generally consistent with these previous studies, especially for students with a bachelor's degree, except with respect to the negative influence of student age. Regarding educational background data, neither candidates' last previous attendance at a 4-year college or a private school prior to matriculation nor parents' attainment of a bachelor's degree were significant factors in predicting first-year pharmacy students' GPAs.…”

Relationship Between Admission Data and Pharmacy Student Involvement in Extracurricular Activities

“…4 Students who earn a bachelor's degree prior to entering a pharmacy program have higher cumulative grade point averages (GPAs) during the first year of the PharmD program than other students 5,6 ; however, the practical implications of a significant difference in GPA is questionable. 6 The association between student academic success and factors such as prepharmacy GPA, grades in specific prepharmacy courses, Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) scores, and a prior 4-year college degree has been examined .…”

“…6 The association between student academic success and factors such as prepharmacy GPA, grades in specific prepharmacy courses, Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) scores, and a prior 4-year college degree has been examined . [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Cumulative prepharmacy GPA is an inconsistent predictor of academic success in pharmacy school. [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] Chisholm and colleagues reported a prior 4-year college degree as a predictor of success but the results of a study by Thomas and colleagues did not determine a prior degree as a predictor of success.…”

Admission Variables Predictive of Academic Struggle in a PharmD Program

“…Predictors of academic success within pharmacy degree programs have included prepharmacy GPA and prepharmacy math/science GPA, 14,17,20,24 PCAT composite and PCAT subcategory scores, 18,20,21,25,27 and achievement of a 4-year college degree. 14,16,17,19,24,30 In contrast, some studies do not consider GPA as predictive, 14,16,18,19,23,27 some studies suggest use of the PCAT subcategory scores 10,15,20,22 over the PCAT composite score, and 1 study opposed the 4-year degree achievement as a predictor of success in pharmacy school. 22 Another study assessed factors related to advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) grades in doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) programs.…”