Student Grading, Progress, and Retest Policy in the Preclinical Curriculum

Authorizing Body:

Date Issued:

July 18, 2018

Last Update:

November 20, 2023

Rationale:

Course grading is under the control of course directors and is based on guidelines and standards expressed in the OUWB student handbook and course syllabi. Decisions on retesting are made by the Office of Medical Education following consultation with course directors and consideration of the student’s overall academic performance.

Scope and Applicability:

All OUWB students enrolled in the M1 and M2 years

Grading:

1. The minimum breakpoint for the P1 grade is 70% for all preclinical courses. Students must also achieve a 70% average for all high-stakes examinations in the course and a minimal score (≥60%) on each high- stakes examination in the course.
2. The breakpoint for the Honors grade is 90% for all preclinical courses. Students may also need to meet an attendance requirement to be eligible for the grade of Honors.
3. Written and practical examinations can be separately managed and remediated with approval from the Associate Dean for Preclinical Education.
4. Grading standards must be clearly outlined in course syllabi.

Retesting

1. Retests should be of similar format and difficulty to the original failed examination(s).
2. Students must achieve an average grade of ≥60% on high-stakes examinations in a course in order to be eligible for a retest in that course.

Progress to the Winter Semester

1. Students cannot fail more than two (2) courses in the fall semester and be allowed to progress to the winter semester (i.e., a student may not post more than two failing course grades prior to the fall retest period and be allowed to progress to the winter semester).
2. Students cannot fail two (2) courses in the same discipline in the M1 fall semester and be allowed to progress to the winter semester (i.e., a student cannot fail both BFCP 1 and BFCP 2 or fail both AFCP 1 and AFCP 2).

Retaking Courses in the Summer Semester

1. Students may be allowed to repeat failed courses (over the summer semester) to stay on track with their cohort. Such repeat courses must have the same content as the OUWB course offered during the Fall or Winter semesters, or be a similar course offered by another LCME-accredited U.S. medical school. All courses taken at another medical school to remediate a failed required course in the OUWB curriculum must be approved by the OUWB course directors from the corresponding course and the Associate Dean for Preclinical Education.
2. Students may be allowed to repeat multiple courses over the summer semester. In the M1 year, students will not be permitted to repeat more than a total of three (3) among the foundational and organ system courses.  For example, if a student is required to repeat AFCP 1 and BFCP 2 over the summer semester, they may also repeat only one of the four winter semester organ system courses.
3. All remediation courses must be successfully completed for the student to be promoted to the next academic year and allowed to enroll the next semester.
4. No retests of a remediation course will be offered.

Definitions:

High-stakes examination - A summative examination that must be passed in order to pass the course.

Written examination - An examination composed of questions (multiple choice, short answer, or essay) that may be delivered in a written or online format.

Practical examination - A laboratory-based summative examination that may involve questions requiring students to demonstrate knowledge of specimens and/or images of specimens.

Similar format and difficulty - An assessment instrument with a level of difficulty and question type that approximates the format and difficulty of the original examination.

Related Policies and Forms:

Appendix: