Does awarding a medical degree with honours act as a motivator or demotivator to student learning?
OBJECTIVE
To look at students' support for, and perception of, the effects of awarding a degree with honours.


METHODS
Questionnaires were given to all medical students from those entering year 1 to those graduating, i.e. six cohorts. We performed quantitative and qualitative analyses on the responses.


METHODS
University of Manchester.


METHODS
Medical students.


RESULTS
Of 1618 students, 1290 responded (80%). The majority of students thought that we should have a system to award a degree with honours (968/1290[75%]), but this support was related to a number of variables. When asked to rate their agreement to a series of statements, students from the later years were more likely to disagree that an honours system is a helpful motivator for students to learn (Kruskal-Wallis; P < 0.0001). In contrast, those students with 'points' counting towards an honours degree were more likely to agree that there should be an honours system (chi2[1]=18.7, P < 0.0001).


CONCLUSIONS
Most students supported the honours system. However, there was less support from students in later years. The qualitative analysis showed a mixture of views. There was a relationship between the probability of being awarding a degree with honours and support of the system.
O'Neill
P
P
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Baxter
C M
CM
Morris
J
J
D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D004521:Educational Measurement; D004739:England; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*