The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 269 No 7208 p141
27 July 2002

Welcome for high pass rate in new format registration examination

The examiners for the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's registration examination have welcomed a high pass rate in this year's summer examination, held on 28 June.

The examiners have offered their congratulations both to the candidates and to their preregistration tutors for their effort, which has resulted in an overall pass rate of nearly 95 per cent.

The chairman of the examiners, Professor Michael Aulton, said that preregistration trainees' hard work this year had been rewarded.

The examination was the first to be held following the introduction of a revised syllabus and a new format. For the first time, the examination included a separate section of calculation questions which candidates had to pass in addition to passing the examination as a whole.

Commenting on the introduction of the calculations section, Professor Aulton said: "The requirement for a pass in calculations has been considered by the examiners for some years, because although candidates have generally performed well overall, many have shown a lack of ability in pharmaceutical calculations. The examiners have felt this to be an untenable state of affairs and in recent years have gradually increased the proportion of calculation questions in the examination, culminating in the introduction of a separate pass mark this year.

"Candidates had been informed about the importance of passing the calculations section and must have worked extremely hard to achieve such success. We are pleased that tomorrow's pharmacists have shown themselves to have excellent scientific and practice knowledge at the start of their careers."

The new style registration examination was the culmination of a revised preregistration year. Most of the candidates who sat the summer examination were 2001–02 preregistration trainees who had been the first to graduate after the introduction of a four-year pharmacy degree in England in Wales. They also were the first to undertake the new performance standards preregistration training programme, requiring them to spend a minimum of two weeks in the major sector of practice different from their main training placement (hospital or community). Their tutors had been provided with new style training workbooks.

The Society says that another factor that might have contributed to the high pass rate is that in recent years the examiners have provided feedback to schools of pharmacy and preregistration tutors about the performance of registration examination candidates in calculation questions and the need to help them improve.

Another possible factor is that a higher number of candidates than usual withdrew from the examination in the weeks or days leading up to it — some of them on the day itself. This appears to be because they thought seriously about their readiness to sit the examination and did not go ahead with it if in doubt about their ability to pass.

This year the number of candidates sitting the summer examination was 1,469, of whom 1,392 (94.8 per cent) passed and 77 (5.2 per cent) failed. In the calculations section, 97.7 per cent achieved a pass.

Of the 1,469 candidates, 1,305 were United Kingdom graduates or sandwich course students, of whom 1,255 (96.2 per cent) passed and 50 (3.8 per cent) failed. The remaining 164 candidates were pharmacists from overseas seeking to register through the adjudicating route. Of these candidates, 137 passed (83.5 per cent and 27 (16.5 per cent) failed.

For 72 of the 77 who failed, this summer's examination was their first attempt. For four of the failed candidates it was the second attempt and for one it was the third attempt.

The next sitting of the examination takes place on 27 September 2002.

Pass list (PDF 60K), p142

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