"Make-up" Examinations: Comparison of on-Time and Late Examination Student Scores

Nursing faculty may have concerns about unfair advantages and inflated examination grades when students take an examination late.

The purpose of the study was to compare make-up examination scores with on-time examination scores to determine whether scores were higher in students who took an examination late.

A descriptive, comparative study using retrospective examination scores from a large nursing program was analyzed. Late examination scores were compared with the student's individual on-time examination average and the class's average of on-time examination scores.

A total of 156 examinations were taken late. There were no statistically significant differences between students' late examination scores when compared with the student's on-time examinations or the class average of the examination.

Students do not appear to gain an advantage when taking an examination late. Findings may assist faculty in developing policies for taking make-up examinations.