An Investigation of College and School of Pharmacy Support for Graduates who Fail the NAPLEX

To determine the prevalence of Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)-accredited colleges/schools of pharmacy (C/SOP) that support graduates who fail the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) on their first attempt and, secondarily, to characterize the nature and determine the effectiveness of that support.

A 19-item electronic survey was designed to assess if and how C/SOP supports graduates who fail the NAPLEX on their first attempt and the perceived effectiveness of this support. The survey, which contained forced-response, Likert, and open-ended items, was distributed to 141 ACPE-accredited C/SOP. Subsequent-attempt pass rates were compared between C/SOP that reported providing (or not providing) support. Descriptive statistics, χ², and t-tests were conducted.

Fifty-eight C/SOP participated (41% response rate). The demographics and mean 3-year first-time NAPLEX pass rates among responding C/SOP were comparable to those of all ACPE-accredited C/SOP. While nearly all C/SOP (97%) acknowledged their responsibility in preparing students for the NAPLEX while enrolled, only 29% indicated supporting graduates who failed the NAPLEX on their first attempt. This was accomplished through the allocation of faculty/staff time and effort (76.5%) and access to college/school resources (64.7%). Those offering support deemed their process somewhat to very effective for improving subsequent-attempt pass rates; however, no difference was observed between C/SOP with or without established processes (57.5% vs 59.8%).

Few C/SOP have established support processes for graduates who fail the NAPLEX. Those providing support indicated it was effective; however, there was no correlation to better subsequent-attempt pass rates. While the onus of passing the NAPLEX falls to graduates, C/SOP may consider supporting those who fail the exam, time- and resource-permitting.