Preparing pharmacy students for postgraduate training through a residency preparedness elective course.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the benefit of a residency preparedness elective course and assess the ability of the course to provide students with the knowledge and experiences needed to competitively apply for residency programmes.

METHODS

A pre-/postsurvey study on a 2-credit hour elective course for third-year pharmacy students. This course was designed to provide them with the knowledge and experiences needed to competitively apply for pharmacy residency programmes.

KEY FINDINGS

Students' perceptions of the elective course were captured through pre- and postcourse evaluations utilizing a 15-item survey. The main reasons students participated in this course was to gain a better understanding of the residency application process (median Likert score = 5; 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree), develop interviewing techniques (5) and enhance clinical competency (5). By the end of the course, students felt more confident with their understanding of pharmacy residency programmes (4 versus 5, P = 0.002) and of the residency application process (2 versus 5, P = 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Upon completion of a pharmacy residency preparedness elective course, students felt more confident in their understanding and ability to apply for a residency programme.