Programme Evaluation of Electives in the New CBME Curriculum in Indian Medical Education

Electives have been one of the milestones to be achieved after the commencement of Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) curriculum where the 2019 batch of undergraduate students was scheduled for their Elective postings after the completion of examination of MBBS Phase III, Part I and before starting Phase III, Part II. This study was planned to evaluate the effectiveness of the Elective programme in the CBME Curriculum in Indian Medical Education.

A cross-sectional study was conducted at Vardhman Mahavir Medical College & Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India, from February 2023 to July 2023. A multi-level approach was used for assessing the programme effectiveness following Kirkpatrick's model. The first level was the immediate reaction of participants at the end of the Electives that was evaluated by a feedback proforma. The second was to observe the extent of learning, assessed through either pre-test or post-tests or OSPE/OSCE by the individual departments. The third level pertained to documenting transfer of acquired knowledge to the students via structured proforma. The fourth level determines the impact of the programme on the institution's goals which was not undertaken in the present study.

Quantitative analysis of the questionnaires to evaluate the reaction and behaviour of students showed that the Electives significantly improved the students' satisfaction with this curriculum pathway in terms of content, resources, and soft skills acquired. Maximum Satisfaction index for responses to reaction (level 1) was 82.6 for the item stating motivation of students to pursue continuous learning. However, for evaluation of behaviour (level 3), Maximum Satisfaction index was 88.8, for the item indicating how well the knowledge and skills learnt in the elective postings have been put into effect. Qualitative analysis of questionnaires revealed that students considered Electives as being innovative, interesting, and a highly regarded experience that helped them to customise their learning experiences and explore the areas of interest in medical education.

Electives introduced in the CBME curriculum were generally well-received by students. The ability to choose from a range of specialised topics allowed students to explore their interests, deepen their knowledge, and develop specific skills in their desired areas of focus. Overall, it is concluded that the Elective programme was successful as measured at Kirkpatrick levels 1, 2, and 3.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-025-02314-x.