Developing an online prematriculation orientation program and its relation to student performance in the first class taken in medical school.
BACKGROUND
In 2004 the University of Nebraska College of Medicine developed an online prematriculation program, Fast Start, to introduce students to the environment and expectations in medical school.


OBJECTIVE
This quantitative study was conducted to determine whether using Fast Start correlated with performance in the gross anatomy course.


METHODS
A hierarchical regression analysis was used to correlate grades in gross anatomy with a set of common prediction variables and a variable for use of Fast Start.


RESULTS
The results showed that the predictive power of the full model, including the Fast Start variable, was slightly stronger than for the reduced model. A separate model verified the absence of an interaction between Fast Start use and prior academic ability.


CONCLUSIONS
The online Fast Start program provided an efficient and effective method of delivering a prematriculation student orientation experience; its use was associated with marginally improved performance in a medical school course.
Stoddard
Hugh A
HA
Curriculum Development Office, University of Nebraska College of Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska, USA. hstoddard@unmc.edu
Pamies
Rubens J
RJ
Carver
David S
DS
Todd
Gordon L
GL
D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D004516:Education, Premedical; D004521:Educational Measurement; D006801:Humans; D009329:Nebraska; D009862:Online Systems; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012577:Schools, Medical; D013337:Students, Medical