Development and evaluation of a team-taught academic advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE)

Purpose: A team-taught pharmacy practice academic APPE was developed to expose students to various experiences and philosophies in academia with the goal of encouraging academic career interest. The development and evaluation of this APPE is described.

Methods: Pharmacy practice faculty developed a shared syllabus, educational outcomes with corresponding activities, and a structured discussion schedule for a 4-week APPE. Students participating in this academic APPE during the 2011-2012 academic year were included in the analysis. During the APPE, each student completed a pre- and post-assessment to measure knowledge in regards to academia as a profession. Students completed self-assessment evaluations at mid-point and at completion of the APPE which were compared with faculty assessments of students. An IRB-approved anonymous 17-item electronic questionnaire evaluated students’ perception of the APPE and likelihood in pursuing academic careers. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used as appropriate. Significance was set at a p-value of 0.05. 

Results: Fourteen students completed the academic APPE with 7 faculty members. All students completed outlined learning objectives. Prior to the rotation 5 students (36%) had an interest in academia versus 6 (42%) upon APPE completion. Average student scores on the pre- and post-assessments were 66.2% and 83.5% respectively, demonstrating increase knowledge base in academia (p=0.0007). Nine students (64%) completed the post-APPE questionnaire; all agreed or strongly agreed the teaching style of the APPE enhanced learning, weekly discussions were positive experiences, and would recommend this APPE to classmates.  

Conclusions: A team-taught academic APPE increased student knowledge of pharmacy practice faculty responsibilities and encouraged interest in academic careers in fourth year pharmacy students.