How Much Content Knowledge Do Graduating Medical Students Retain From Their Preclinical and Clinical Courses?

• In Event: Poster Session 9
  In Poster Session: Education and Assessment in the Professions

Abstract

Knowledge retention has been a long-standing problem in education. Because medical students are exposed to so much material during medical school, many have questioned how much knowledge is typically retained. Previous research on discipline-specific courses (e.g., anatomy, physiology, etc.) has often presented conflicting findings, with studies suggesting that approximately 38%-75% is retained over time. The purpose of this study was twofold: 1) to determine how well exiting fourth year medical students could perform on an examination consisting of previously answered questions during years one and two; and 2) to determine the extent to which fourth year medical students’ responses remain the same or differed when presented the same items two to three years after they were originally answered.

Authors

• Kenneth Royal, North Carolina State University

• Mari-Wells Hedgpeth, North Carolina State University

• Debra Bynum, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Cristin Colford, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill