An evaluation of the pharmacy college admissions test as a tool for pharmacy college admission committees

American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, Fall 2001 by Kelley, Katherine A, Secnik, Kristina, Boye, Mark E

From the statistical regression analysis (Table Ill), the combination of pre-pharmacy GPA and PCAT accounts for almost two times more of the variance in first-quarter GPA than does pre-pharmacy GPA alone (36 versus 18 percent). The PCAT alone accounts for approximately 25 percent of the variance in first-quarter pharmacy GPA for the first three admissions cycles investigated and approximately 23 percent of the variance in first-quarter pharmacy GPA for the class entering autumn 2000. These values are similar to values reported previously in the literature(2-4,6). This finding is also comparable to variance predicted by other post baccalaureate entrance exams such as the GRE and MCAT(2).

Results (Table V) of this study also support the use of the PLAT composite (adjusted R^sup 2^= 0.221) rather than individual scores of the component sections (adjusted R^sup 2^ values Verbal = 0.043; Biology = 0.114; Reading Comprehension = 0.158; Quantitative = 0.127; Chemistry = 0.178). An additional benefit of these analyses has been that the admissions committee has approached the autumn 2001 admissions cycle with a greater degree of confidence in their understanding of the meaning of the PCAT score within the context of PharmD admissions. We could argue that by viewing the analysis presented here of the 1997-1999 data prior to the autumn 2000 cycle they were able to make more informed decisions (i.e., the variance explained by the combination of pre-pharmacy GPA and PCAT in first-quarter pharmacy GPA went from 35 to 51 percent.

The finding that PCAT scores below the 40th percentile yield first-quarter GPA's less than 2.0 should not be used as justification for a cut-off point for admissions decisions. However, careful attention should be given to applicants with PCAT composite percentiles below 40. While it is tempting to "draw a line in the sand" below which applicants are rejected, we need to keep in mind the subjectivity of the process which we are administering. We are admitting future professionals to our programs with the hope that they will succeed in our curriculums and then join the professional ranks. One single piece of data gathered by a one-day test should not function as the sole determinant or gatekeeper to the profession of pharmacy. Admissions decisions are subjective because they are based on human beings that inherently possess a great deal of variability. The key then is to find a combination of tools that we can incorporate into informed decisions to help us select the best possible applicants.

LIMITATIONS

The study results may be biased by the fact that the sample contains data from a single institution and is limited to only students admitted to pharmacy school. The data used in this study also were limited in their ability to explain success in pharmacy school for either race or native language. Both of these groups were underrepresented in the sample because of their low enrollment in the College during the 1997-98, 199899 and the 1999-2000 admissions classes. Future research in this area should include samples with a more diverse population of pharmacy students. Additionally, a multi-institution evaluation of PCAT may prove beneficial.