(316) Pharmacy Phoenix: Reviving Student Knowledge for On-time Progression

Objective : To evaluate the impact of summer course retakes when a D or F was earned on on-time student progression at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy.

Methods: Beginning summer 2018, students who had a deficiency (defined by academic policies as a F grade) or more than one D or F may be allowed to retake coursework if approved by the dean as part of their academic plan. Students completed approved courses asynchronously, in an accelerated format over a 4–8-week period (depending on defined credit hours). Data were collected retrospectively from 2018-2022 on students who retook courses. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data, which included the reason for the retake, academic performance in the original and retake course, and the students’ academic) status after the retake.

Results: Of 77 students completing course retakes, 53 students (68.8%) retook one course and 24 (31.2%) retook two courses. For students retaking one course, 24 (45.2%) and 29 (54.7%) were due to F or D grade in the prior academic year, respectively. For students retaking two courses, most had two prior D grades (68.8%, n=16). A higher letter grade was earned in 82.2% with the course retake, and 53 (68.8%) students graduated or progressed on-time. Students retaking two courses with prior D grades had a higher rate of progression (81.3%, n=13) than those retaking two courses with a D and F grade (37.5%, n=3).

Conclusions: The summer retake course approach allowed students to progress on time in the curriculum by allowing them to address their area of weakness. The course retake option also provided insight on curricular content and sequencing.