The transition of the United States Medical License Exam Step 1 examination to pass/fail was implemented in January 2022 with the intent to reduce medical student stress levels while ensuring that students maintained a sufficient degree of medical knowledge in order to continue in their educational journey. While this is an admirable goal,…

Unforeseen complications during the administration of large-scale testing programs are inevitable and can prevent examinees from accessing all test material. For classification tests in which the primary purpose is to yield a decision, such as a pass/fail result, the current study investigated a model-based standard error approach, Bayesian…

When the safety of the public is at stake, it is particularly relevant for licensing and credentialing exam agencies to use defensible standard setting methods to categorize candidates into competence categories (e.g., pass/fail). The aim of this study was to gather evidence to support change to the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing-USA…

The following report of descriptive statistics addresses the matriculating class of 2001-2007 according to their Law School Admission Council (LSAC) index. Generally, this report will offer information on the first time bar and ultimate performance on the Bar Exam of TMSL students. In addition, graduating GPA according to the LSAC index will also…

Due to the high-stakes nature of medical exams it is prudent for test agencies to critically evaluate test data and control for potential threats to validity. For the typical multiple station performance assessments used in medicine, it may take time for examinees to become comfortable with the test format and administrative protocol. Since each…

The following report of descriptive statistics gives the passing percentages of the Bar examination for the Thurgood Marshall School of Law (TMSL) for the calendar years of 2005-2009. A Five Year Analysis is given for the entire period, followed by Annual Analysis of the same data. This report is meant to serve as a continual update of the…

The following report of descriptive statistics gives the passing percentages of the Bar examination for the Thurgood Marshall School of Law (TMSL) for the calendar years of 2005-2009. A Five Year Analysis is given for the entire period, followed by Annual Analyses. This report is meant to serve as a continual update of the progress of the Law…

This retrospective study was conducted to examine the relationship between selected variables and performance on the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). Data were collected from one hundred twenty graduates of a baccalaureate program; graduates completed either the traditional four-year track or an accelerated…

Two methods for estimating measures of pass-fail reliability are derived, by which both theta and kappa may be estimated from a single test administration. The methods require only a single test administration and are computationally simple. Both are based on the Spearman-Brown formula for estimating stepped-up reliability. The non-distributional…

Standard setting on licensure and certification tests is difficult both to execute and to defend. There may, however, be certain minimum standards for standard setting on which most will be able to agree. One such standard is logical consistency. M. T. Kane (1984, 1986) has suggested an approach to evaluating the logical consistency of one widely…

The intent of this study was to identify predictor variables for pass/fail status on the Elementary Professional Development Examination for Certification of Educators in Texas (ExCET) for preservice teachers at a university in South Texas. Logistic regression was used to investigate the dependency between the predictors and the ExCET pass/fail…

The major forms of evidence that support a standard's credibility are reviewed, and what can be done over time and for different forms of an examination to enhance its comparability in a credentialing setting is outlined. Pass-fail decisions must be consistent to ensure a standard's credibility. (SLD)

Two methods--non-distributional and normal--are derived for estimating measures of pass-fail reliability. Both are based on the Spearman Brown formula and require only a single test administration. Results from a simulation (n=20,000 examinees) and a licensure examination (n=4,828 examinees) illustrate these methods. (SLD)

A survey of 12 constituencies (totaling 2,288 respondents) concerning the National Board of Medical Examiners' (NBME) comprehensive Part I and Part II examinations revealed support for more even distribution of fail rates across examinations, support for a fixed standard, and favorable reaction to setting standards based on review of examination…

Passing scores for licensure and certification tests are justified by showing that decisions based on the passing score achieve the purposes of the credentialing program while avoiding any serious negative consequences. The passing score is justified to the extent decisions based on it have positive consequences. More specifically, the standard…