Competency-based assessment of practice-based experiential learning in undergraduate pharmacy programmes

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Experiential Learning Assessment
• Competency-Based Education

Background:

• Current Masters in Pharmacy (MPharm) programs in the UK predominantly assess students upon return to the university.
• There is a need to explore how experiential learning (EL) facilitators can conduct competency-based assessments during practical placements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To gather feedback from EL leads on implementing competency-based assessments by EL facilitators in MPharm programs.
• To investigate current EL assessment structures within UK MPharm programs.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional online survey was distributed to all 30 UK universities offering MPharm programs.
• The nine-item survey included open-ended and closed-ended questions on perceived assessable competencies, tools, methods, and advantages/disadvantages of EL facilitator assessments.
• A 5-point Likert scale was used to gauge agreement on potential assessment activities.

Main Results:

• Seventeen of 21 responding universities (70% response rate) were included in the analysis.
• Most assessments are conducted by university staff (59%) rather than during EL (39%).
• 100% agreement exists that facilitators can assess communication and professionalism, but no consensus was reached on assessment tools or methods. Barriers include time burden and marking inconsistency, with a need for facilitator training highlighted.

Conclusions:

• Experiential learning (EL) in MPharm programs currently involves minimal direct assessment of students.
• While facilitators are seen as capable of assessing communication and professionalism, a lack of consensus on tools and methods suggests a need for context-specific approaches.
• Standardized facilitator training is recommended to address consistency issues in competency assessment during EL.