title: Development of a course review process.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe and assess a course review process designed to enhance course quality.
  
  
  METHODS
  A course review process led by the curriculum and assessment committees was designed for all required courses in the doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) program at a school of pharmacy. A rubric was used by the review team to address 5 areas: course layout and integration, learning outcomes, assessment, resources and materials, and learner interaction.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred percent of targeted courses, or 97% of all required courses, were reviewed from January to August 2010 (n=30). Approximately 3.5 recommendations per course were made, resulting in improvement in course evaluation items related to learning outcomes. Ninety-five percent of reviewers and 85% of course directors agreed that the process was objective and the course review process was important.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The course review process was objective and effective in improving course quality. Future work will explore the effectiveness of an integrated, continual course review process in improving the quality of pharmacy education.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics, School of Pharmacy, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA. apersky@unc.edu
authors.forename: Adam M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Persky
authors.forename: Pamela U
authors.initials: PU
authors.lastname: Joyner
authors.forename: Wendy C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Cox
mesh_terms: D003479:Curriculum; D004512:Education, Pharmacy / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D057766:Policy; D018794:Problem-Based Learning; D016730:Program Development; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards