Interim Dean University of the Pacific Stockton, California, United States
Objective : To implement a set of student success initiatives aimed at improving retention
Methods: Based on interview data from students who did not progress on-time in the fall 2021 trimester, 3 major factors were identified that contributed to academic struggles: open book exams during undergraduate pre-requisite coursework leading to a lack of foundational knowledge, under-developed time management/executive functioning skills needed to be successful in courses that were primarily assessed using a midterm and final exam, and a lack of comfortability in reaching out for assistance when struggling. To address these factors, faculty advisors began receiving advisee grades on in courses every other week with guidance to reach out to students having difficulty beginning very early in the trimester. A pre-matriculation online program was implemented to identify and address knowledge deficits. To address issues with putting off studying for exams or ignoring one class to study for an exam in a different one, starting in the fall of 2022, incoming students sat for one exam every other Friday that contained questions from their courses. Success for the interventions was measured using progression data as well as student opinion surveys.
Results: The percentage of students who did not successfully complete the first trimester of pharmacy school decreased 40% from the fall of 2021 to fall of 2022 while the utilization of student success services such as tutoring or counseling was significantly increased. Student opinion of the integrated exams was positive with 90.4% of students rating their experience with it as a 4 or 5 on a 5-point Likert scale with 5 being the best.
Conclusions: The multi-modal approach was successful in increasing retention and students had favorable opinions on the initiatives.
