An evaluation of clinical mock boards and their influence on the success rate on qualifying boards

An important responsibility of each dental school to its graduating dental students is exposure to and evaluation on a mock board that simulates one or more of the examinations given by its respective regional testing agencies. An introduction to the procedures and environment that will be encountered on a qualifying examination will hopefully increase a student's chance for success on such a test. The purpose of this study was to test the relationship of the various attributes or variables of mock boards given by dental schools in the United States and Puerto Rico with results obtained on the regional or state qualifying board(s) related to timing, structure, method of evaluation, graduation, and remediation. A twenty-item questionnaire was mailed to key clinical or curricular deans at fifty-four accredited dental schools. Ninety-three percent of schools completed and returned the questionnaire. In the sample of respondents, the percentages of schools participating in the various qualifying exams were: CRDTS = 22 percent; NERB = 42 percent; SRTA = 20 percent; WREB = 28 percent; Independents = 24 percent, with a reported overall passing rate (greater than or equal to 70) of 58 percent. The median time between the mock board and the qualifying board was 7.5 weeks. Results indicated that no single aspect of a mock board had a statistically significant effect on the outcome of qualifying examinations, resulting in a failure to reject the null hypothesis. Such findings may indicate that schools should focus their efforts on reassessing the restrictions and requirements imposed upon their students related to their mock board. A future study could include surveying recent graduates for their opinions of the value of their mock board experiences.