Delivering a Postbaccalaureate Medical Sciences Certificate ...

Delivering a Postbaccalaureate Medical Sciences Certificate Program to Working Adults Elizabeth Dudkin , Mathew Bodek , Timothy Niiler , Kathleen Geveke , David Finneran and John Tierney , # † ǂ ~ Departments of Biology , Chemistry , Physics and Instructional Design , The Pennsylvania State University, Brandywine, 25 Yearsley Mill Road, Media PA 19063 The Miami Dade College +, Wolfson Campus, Department of Natural Science, 300 N. E. 2 nd Avenue, Miami, FL 33132 #

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Abstract   Post baccalaureate programs for delivering the required science subjects to students with a degree in a non-science subject are abundant at numerous institutions throughout North America. Described in this article is a post-baccalaureate program that delivers chemistry, physics, and biology in a blended environment over a period of twelve calendar months. The program ensures that the students will have met all of the science requirements for admission to their intended professional school, and to ensure appropriate performance on the professional exam (MCAT, DCAT and GRE) required for their graduate program. The program has been in existence for eight years and has an initial success rate of 86%, settling to 67% now, for those who complete the program, and an average attrition rate of 17% . Qualitative indicators for student success in the program are also reviewed as well as reasons for why students are unable to complete the program .

Introduction:

In 2013 there were 135 postbaccalaureate premedical programs listed1 on the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) web site, in 2015 this number2 stands at 172. A postbaccalaureate program of this type is usually defined as a program that delivers the required science courses to students who already have a degree in a non-science area, and will fulfill the science course requirements for admission into various schools in health related areas. These programs have a supplementary goal of preparing the students for the requisite professional school exams in their intended chosen field. The health related professional schools include not only medical school but dental, physician assistant, veterinarian and nursing schools. The exams related to these schools are the Medical School Admissions Test (MCAT), the Dental Admission Test (DAT), or the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) for veterinary school; the physician assistant programs do not generally require performance on a professional exam for entry. To date, the literature shows evidence of student performance of post-baccalaureate students versus ‘traditional entry’ students to medical schools.3 The literature clearly delineated the necessity and experiences in ensuring a diverse pool of doctors. 4-7 However, there does not appear to be a detailed description of any of the 172 postbaccalaureate premedical programs already mentioned, other than the descriptions found on their respective admissions websites. The majority of these programs appear to be one year programs designed around a traditional in class, on campus delivery mechanism.

The program described here takes a blended approach, where the students study the material online and meet with instructors on a designated evening for question and office hour sessions. The labs and exams are completed on campus at the weekends. The description of courses in the program is shown in Table 1. Table 1: Penn State University Course Descriptions PSU Course Number  

Course Description

  Chem. 110

 

Chem. 111 Chem. 112 Chem. 113 Chem. 210 Chem. 212 Chem. 213 Chem. 472 Bio. 110 Bio. 141 Bio. 142 Bio. 230W Phys. 250 Phys. 251

Title (credits) Overview Chemical Principles I (3) Basic concepts and quantitative relations.   Experimental Chemistry I (1) Introduction to quantitative experimentation in chemistry. Chemical Principles II (3) Continuation of CHEM 110, including an introduction to the chemistry of the elements. Experimental Chemistry II (1) Continuation of CHEM 111, with emphasis on topics related to CHEM 112. Organic Chemistry I (3 cr.) Principles and theories; nomenclature; chemistry of the functional groups; applications of spectroscopy. Organic Chemistry II (3) Continuation of CHEM 210. Emphasis is placed on the role of organic reactions in biological chemistry. Laboratory in Organic Chemistry (2) Basic laboratory operations; synthesis and chemical or instrumental analysis. Biochemistry (3) Basic structure and function of cellular components; principles of enzyme kinetics and regulation Basic Concepts and Biodiversity (4) A study of the evolution of the major groups of organisms including the fundamental concepts of biology. Introductory Physiology (3) Explanation of the normal structure and function of the animal body, with special emphasis on human body systems. Physiology Laboratory (1) Experiments demonstrating basic physiological principles, with special reference to man. Molecules and Cells (4) A study of cellular phenomena including molecular genetics and metabolic interactions. The “W” designates a writing intensive course. Introductory Physics I (4) Selected topics in mechanics, heat, and sound. Introductory Physics II (4) Selected topics in light, electricity, and magnetism.

Data: Student enrollment data is shown in Table 2, and the institutions that have accepted our graduates is shown in Table 3.

Results and Discussion: The data shows that the students who make it through the program are competitive in getting into their respective professional schools. It is also clear that from Tables 2 and 3 that the students have been accepted into a wide array of schools. Focusing on years 2008 through 2012 where we have the most complete data, the average success rate is 67% for those cohorts with an average attrition rate of 17% - attrition being defined as those students who enroll in the program and complete it versus those students who drop out. Clearly, this is preliminary data and we are choosing not to address success and attrition rates with years 2013 and on yet because those students are still in the process of applying to professional schools. Further, when we get into these cohorts, we have seen an increase in the number of students who decide to switch from the intense one-year program to the two-year version of the program further complicating the analysis. As stated, students who complete the program are able to achieve their goals. The reasons for those who are unable to achieve their goals are varied and significant, but usually involve some significant change in their living situation. The most common reasons for not completing the course is a change in employment status or an

Table 2: Students Enrolled and Completion Data Year

  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Number of students initially enrolled

  11 8 10 17 16 15 13 18

Number of Number of Percent students students success completing the achieving their upon program desired completion professional (attrition) outcome   7 8 9 15 12 7* 7* -

  6 5 6 10 6 1 2 -

  86% (36%) 63% (0%) 67% (10%) 67% (12%) 50% (25%) 14% 15% -

* some students in these cohorts are completing the two year post-bacc

Table 3: Institutions that have accepted our graduates American University of Antigua A.T. Still University- Arizona School of Health Sciences Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Dartmouth Medical School DeSales University- M.S. in Physician Assistant Studies Drexel University Physician Assistant Program Drexel University Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Sciences Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine Northwestern University- Graduate Program Nova Southeastern College of Osteopathic Medicine Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine Penn State Hershey Medical Center Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Saint George's University SUNY Downstate College of Medicine Temple University Schools of Dentistry, Medicine, Pharmacy Texas A & M College of Medicine Thomas Jefferson University Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine Uniformed Services University University of California- Davis School of Veterinary Medicine University of California- San Francisco School of Pharmacy University of Maryland- Schools of Pharmacy and Dentistry University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey University of Melbourne (Australia) DVM Program University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy University of Texas Medical School at Houston University of Virginia Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine

unexpected change in family responsibilities – such as caring for a sick spouse. Students who drop out in the first few weeks of the program, which is usually one or two student, admit that they did not fully comprehend the intensity of the program as stated during the orientation sessions. Students who have passed through the early cohorts are now graduating their respective professional schools. These students have indicated that the intensity of the program certainly stood them in good stead during their studies in their respective professional school. Students who completed the program but did not go to their intended professional school were either unable to gain acceptance through and inability to achieve a high enough score on the MCAT/DCAT etc or they simply had a change of heart and that their original goal was not for them. The program is for working adults, and one final observation is that those students who continue to work full-time, while in the program, show the greatest success in achieving their goals. These students clearly have well defined time management skills and are able to stay on task while balancing all their other life commitments.

Conclusion This program offers a uniquely different way in which working adults can complete a course of study in order to achieve their goals of studying any one of a myriad of health related fields. The program is not for everyone, and definitely lends itself to students who are very self-motivated and able to deal well with time management. The first five cohorts of students have shown an attrition rate that would not be unexpected for such an intense program of study that relies on self-motivation; however, the students who succeed in the program are clearly able to fulfill their goal of attending their professional school of choice.

References (1) http://web.archive.org/web/201303030054 10/https://services.aamc.org/postbac/ 4/29/15 viewed (2) https://services.aamc.org/postbac/ 4/29/15 viewed (3) Andriole, D. A., Jeffe, D. B. Characteristics of Medical School Matriculants Who Participated in Postbaccalaureate Premedical Programs. Acad. Med. 2011, 86(2), 201-10. doi:10.1097/ACM.0b013e3182045076. (4) Blakely A. W., Broussard L. G., Blueprint for establishing an effective postbaccalaureate medical school pre-entry program for educationally disadvantaged students. Acad. Med. 2003, 78, 437-447. (5) Giordani B., Edwards, A. S., Segal, S. S., Gillum, L. H., Lindsay, A., Johnson, N., Effectiveness of a formal postbaccalaureate pre-medicine program for underrepresented minority students. Acad Med. 2001, 76, 844-848. (6) Jackson, E., W., McGlinn S., Rainey M., Bardo H. R., MEDPREP—30 years of making a difference. Acad. Med. 2003, 78, 448-453. (7) Whitten C. F., Postbaccalaureate program at Wayne State University School of Medicine: a 30-year report. Acad. Med. 1999, 74, 393-396