Entrance Interview Research Articles

Exploring preparedness transitions in medicine and pharmacy: a qualitative longitudinal study to inform multiprofessional learning opportunities.

Despite extensive preparedness literature, existing studies fail to adequately explore healthcare graduates' feelings of preparedness longitudinally across new graduate transition journeys, nor do they compare different healthcare professions to ascertain what opportunities exist for multiprofessional transition interventions. Therefore, this Australian study, underpinned by temporal theory, explores the preparedness transitions of medicine and pharmacy graduates. Our 6-month qualitative longitudinal study involved 12 medicine and 7 pharmacy learners after purposive sampling. They participated in an entrance interview before starting internship, longitudinal audio-diaries during their first three months of internship, and an exit interview. Framework analysis explored patterns in the data cross-sectionally and longitudinally for the whole cohort (thinking over time), with pen portraits illustrating individuals' journeys (thinking through time). Preparedness and unpreparedness narratives involved practical skills and tasks, interpersonal skills, knowledge, and professional practice for medicine and pharmacy. However, narratives for practical skills and tasks, and professional practice were dominant amongst medicine graduates, while narratives for interpersonal skills and knowledge were dominant amongst pharmacy graduates. We found numerous cohort changes in feelings of preparedness over time, but the illustrative pen portraits demonstrated the complexities and nuances through time, including feelings of preparedness before internship becoming unpreparedness during internship (e.g., cannulas), improving preparedness through time (e.g., cover shifts), and persistent feelings of unpreparedness (e.g., patient interactions). While our cross-sectional findings are reasonably consistent with existing research, our comparative and longitudinal findings are novel. We recommend that educators build learners' preparedness through uniprofessional transition interventions involving practical skills and tasks, and professional practice in medicine, and interpersonal skills and knowledge in pharmacy. More importantly, we recommend multiprofessional transition interventions for medicine and pharmacy learners before internship focusing on knowledge, and during internship focusing on practical skills and tasks.

The graduate dietitian experience of employment and employability: A longitudinal qualitative research study from one Australian university.

Diet-related chronic disease contributes significantly to the global burden of disease. Dietitians are best placed to address this disease burden, yet graduate dietitians may struggle to find employment. This study aimed to explore dietetics graduates' experiences of employment and employability, up to 6-month post-degree completion. Secondary data analysis of in-depth qualitative interview data and longitudinal audio-diaries was undertaken. An interpretivist approach was employed whereby knowledge was viewed as subjective and multiple realities exist. A total of five entrance interviews, 31 audio-diaries and three exit interviews, from nine graduates were included in the analysis. This comprised 12 h of longitudinal audio data. Thematic analysis was undertaken using a framework analysis method. Four key themes were identified: (1) The tumultuous process of applying for jobs demonstrated that graduates struggled with repeated rejections. (2) The uncertain journey to employment indicated that job-seeking was a limbo stage marked by uncertainty. (3) Feeling the pressure showed that graduates experienced pressure from multiple sources. (4) Enhancing employability explained that graduates were not prepared for available employment opportunities, but utilised resources to increase their employability. Diverse placement experiences may better prepare graduates for available employment opportunities. To enhance employability, it may be beneficial to assist students to develop job-seeking skills, and to engage in networking and volunteering experiences during their education.

Seeing Color.

“As you can see, I am Black … and the only Black student here. There are no Black faculty in our department. There are no speakers of color in our seminar series, and I rarely see another Black student on the medical campus.” B, a new graduate student, sat across from me during a program entrance interview in my first year as a tenure-track faculty. I had asked about her experience thus far and did not expect this response. I was shocked at the mention of race since I was unaccustomed to discussing it. Then, shameful at my ignorance and being left speechless. B was right—she was the only student of color in our department. She had started with, “As you can see,” but I did not see. I was focused on teaching and paid little attention to diversity. After our meeting (which ended kindly), I started seeing the colors—and the lack thereof—in my life. For the next several months, I became increasingly aware of the presence and absence of people of color. At a high school graduation, the local library, the grocery store, everywhere. Perhaps I was looking for a level of reassurance that I was not incubated in the suburbs and ignorant of B’s loneliness. Reluctantly and painfully, I confronted the fact that I live in a bubble of White privilege and naivety. I started reading, asking questions, and listening, and I became acquainted with the Faculty of Color Network in my college. My director and I discussed diversity with the seminar coordinators, and the number of invites to speakers of color increased. I organized a breakfast event for students with the associate dean for diversity and inclusion, and a “Spotlight on Diversity” event with icebreakers and activities for team building. It was fun to get to know my colleagues and students on a different level without the high stakes of academic assessment, scrutiny of seminar questions, or general judgment that belies hierarchy in academia. At the time, I hoped that these activities were promoting a culture that values diversity, to make a difference for B and anyone who felt marginalized or alone. In the summer of 2020, George Floyd was murdered. Immediately, I knew that my efforts around diversity were weak and misguided. Breakfasts, seminars, and events seemed meaningless as I watched the news. My department reacted to George Floyd’s murder and the subsequent rioting by organizing a Zoom event to talk openly about racism, antiracism, and efforts to embody inclusivity. Some students and faculty shared their experiences and we discussed concepts from How to Be an Antiracist, 1 but many were quiet. The silence and the sadness were deafening. From the interview with B, to my quest for color, to George Floyd’s and Breonna Taylor’s murders in the summer of 2020, my understanding about my role as a faculty member has evolved. All the stakes are higher now. Students of color may not receive equitable resources or support before I meet them, but I embrace the ethical, moral, and professional obligation to ensure every student of color leaves my classroom feeling safe, welcome, valued, and with the educational and professional growth that they came for—to be gainfully employed in academic medicine. Racism plagues systems in the United States, from education to criminal justice to health care, and it makes me nauseous and tearful every single time I confront that fact. For me, this journey from awareness to education to involvement in diversity, equity, and inclusion has been uncharted, painful, surprising, and more meaningful than I ever anticipated. As faculty, we are called to instruct and mentor students. And yet ... B, my colleagues, and friends of color have taught me lessons of far greater importance. Acknowledgments: The author is grateful to B and her colleagues for their thoughtful review of this essay.

Places We've Never Been by Kasie West

Reviewed by: Places We've Never Been by Kasie West Aaren Tucker West, Kasie Places We've Never Been. Delacorte, 2022 [336p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780593176306 $18.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9780593176320 $10.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 6-12 Growing up, Norah and Skyler were the best of friends—and so were their mothers—until Skyler's family moved to Ohio four years ago, leaving devastated Norah [End Page 334] behind. Now it's the summer before their senior year, and their moms' long-talked-about-but-never-realized family RV trip is suddenly happening. Norah is excited for the chance to reconnect with Skyler, but he's apparently not as eager to rekindle their friendship. Confused and rejected, Norah focuses instead on her upcoming college entrance interview and the secrets her mom and brother both seem to be keeping from her. Through Death Valley saunas and river tubing mishaps, however, Norah finds she can't quite give up on the friendship she once treasured so much. The tension—both platonic and romantic—between Norah and Skyler will quickly have readers invested in seeing its resolution. Norah is an appealing narrator, whose struggles to find balance between her true self and the curated version she shows others are a timeless aspect of growing up. West uses flashbacks sparingly but skillfully, showing events in Norah and Skyler's past to connect readers to Norah's emotions in the present. The dialogue is both funny and realistic (especially in family interactions), helping to drive the brisk pace while also allowing for poignant and sweet moments. This is a perfect romance for reading on a road trip or at the beach. Copyright © 2022 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

The effectiveness of extended-duration supervision training for nurses and allied health professionals: A realist evaluation

BackgroundTraining helps maintain high-quality supervision and its associated benefits (e.g. reduced burnout, improved care). While studies have previously evaluated extended-duration supervision training programmes, none have treated these as complex interventions so have not employed realist approaches. ObjectivesBuilding on a previous realist synthesis, this evaluation tests and develops programme theory for extended-duration supervision training to answer the question: to what extent does the supervision training programme work, for whom, under what circumstances and why? DesignWe conducted a realist evaluation of a novel state-wide Victorian 3-month supervision training programme including one or two 3.5-h workshops followed by weekly reflexive longitudinal audio diaries (LADs) for up to 12 weeks. MethodsRealist evaluation data comprised 25 entrance interviews with nurses and allied health professionals, 176 LADs (and 29 written diaries), and 23 exit interviews. We employed team-based realist analysis to identify context-mechanism-outcome configurations (CMOCs) to test and develop programme theory. ResultsWe refined four recurring CMOCs from the realist synthesis programme theory, found insufficient evidence for two, and established five new recurring CMOCs. We identified multiple positive outcomes from our extended-duration supervision training programme (e.g. improved supervisor practices) through various mechanisms relating to pedagogy (e.g. weekly reflexivity), supervisors (e.g. engagement), and workplaces (e.g. enabling supervision cultures). Some negative outcomes were reported (e.g. decreased engagement) through various mechanisms (e.g. suboptimal training design). Such mechanisms were thought to come about by diverse contexts including supervisors (e.g. inexperienced/experienced), professions (nursing/allied health), and organisations (supervision-enabled/non-enabled cultures). ConclusionsOur findings extend the realist synthesis programme theory by highlighting various contexts triggering outcome-generating mechanisms. Programme outcomes are maximised through ongoing supervisor reflexivity paying attention to facilitator-supervisor relationships, as well as protected time for supervisors to translate learning into practice.

Exploring health care graduates' conceptualisations of preparedness for practice: A longitudinal qualitative research study.

Although preparedness for practice (P4P) has been variously described, little shared understanding exists about what P4P is across the health professions. How P4P is conceptualised matters, because this shapes how stakeholders think, talk about and act towards it. Further, multiple understandings can result in diverse expectations for graduate performance. This study therefore explores health care learners' solicited and unsolicited conceptualisations of P4P over their early graduate transition. We conducted longitudinal qualitative research including individual and group entrance interviews (phase 1: n=35), longitudinal audio-diaries (phase 2: n=30), and individual and group exit interviews (phase 3: n=22) with learners from four disciplines (dietetics, medicine, nursing and pharmacy). We employed framework analysis to interrogate data cross-sectionally and longitudinally. We found 13 conceptualisations of P4P (eg knowledge, confidence), broadly similar across the disciplines. We found some conceptualisations dominant in both solicited and unsolicited talk (eg skills), some dominant only in solicited talk (eg competence) and others dominant only in unsolicited talk (eg experience). Although most conceptualisations appeared relatively stable across time, some appeared to dominate at certain time points only (eg employability and skills in phases 1 and 2, and competence in phase 3). This novel study extends previous uniprofessional work by illustrating a broader array of conceptualisations, differences between professions, solicited versus unsolicited talk and longitudinal cohort patterns. We encourage health care educators to discuss these different P4P understandings in graduate transition interventions. Further research is needed to explore other stakeholders' conceptualisations, and over a duration beyond the early graduate transition.

Resource extraction and intersectoral research: Engaging accountable relations in the Environment Community Health Observatory Network

The inaugural gathering of The Environment Community Health Observatory (ECHO) Network is a network of academic, non-profit, and health authority scholars and practitioners committed to understanding and responding to the cumulative impacts of resource extraction. The Network is embedded within multiple jurisdictions and institutional contexts, reflecting the Network’s efforts to work across sectors to address questions arising in communities and regions experiencing the overlapping influences of rurality, remoteness, and resource extraction. In this paper, we draw from entrance interviews and a group exercise with Network members to explore the complexity of accountability as an unfolding challenge for research that addresses resource extraction in Canada. We locate these findings within the current settler colonial context in which the Network is embroiled, arguing that a condition of settler colonialism is erasing not only Indigenous legal orders but also accountability mechanisms outside of state-based discourses. In making this argument, we understand settler colonialism as a failed yet persistent project. We contend that collectively engaging through situated and relational accountabilities beyond simply accounting for “accountability”, ECHO Network members—and others looking to social and environmental change—are critically challenged to approach settler-state apparatuses for transformative engagement beyond merely recognizing that accountability is relational.

Maarja Öpik

Maarja Öpik

Self-Regulated Music Practice: Microanalysis as a Data Collection Technique and Inspiration for Pedagogical Intervention

The purpose of this study was to explore a microanalysis technique for measuring instrumentalists’ self-regulation tendencies during music practice. A secondary purpose was to investigate whether an intervention informed by the features of the microanalysis technique would increase the students’ self-regulated learning tendencies. Three undergraduate instrumental music education majors volunteered to participate in this study. This study was designed as a multiple-baselines experiment spanning 15 consecutive days. Data sources included (a) entrance interviews; (b) daily practice efficacy ratings; (c) data gathered from pre- and posttest microanalysis sessions; (d) detailed behavioral analyses of video-recorded, pre- and posttest practice sessions; and (e) a focus group exit interview. The microanalytic intervention designed for this study involved a coaching session in which a member of the research team explicitly drew attention to the affective, behavioral, and metacognitive qualities related to effective practicing during a student’s practice session. The pretest microanalysis data revealed distinct learning profiles for each student that were corroborated with information from the other data sources. The intervention had modest effects that varied across participants, suggesting that it was useful for bringing to light and addressing individuals’ specific self-regulatory deficiencies in a manner respective to their needs.

Multiple and multidimensional transitions from trainee to trained doctor: a qualitative longitudinal study in the UK

ObjectivesTo explore trainee doctors’ experiences of the transition to trained doctor, we answer three questions: (1) What multiple and multidimensional transitions (MMTs) are experienced as participants move from trainee to...

Redesigning a University Entrance Interview Protocol: A Case Study with Pre-Service Elementary School Teachers in Korea

In Korea, a national university admission is made based on a variety of factors like Grade Point Average(GPA), Statement of Purpose(SOP), Letters of Recommendation, as well as other achievement records and/or descriptions of specific qualifications. In reviewing applications, the admissions committee considers GPA, SOP, recommendation letters and other factors are also taken into consideration in the interview process. An interview test is designed to measure the overall ability of pre-service teachers, particularly focusing on their character and nature. Thus, the purpose of this study is intended to understand the admission processes of a national university in Korea, and to design the interview test questions to choose the ideal pre-service teachers who are to work in the public elementary school after graduation. In order to answer this question, a survey questionnaire was distributed to 478 college students and then results were collected and analysed.

Examining the Foundation of AACP: Report of the 2015-16 Argus Commission

INTRODUCTION The Argus Commission is comprised of the last five presidents of the Association and it is typically charged to examine an issue that is very broad in scope. Recent charges included examining diversity in our applicant and faculty pipelines and the implications of big data across all the academic missions. In keeping with her overarching theme of foundations of citizenship President Boyle elected to ask the 2015-16 Argus Commission to focus internally and examine key aspects of the organization's structure and functioning (1). The original charges included the following: 1. Investigate and recommend assessments for the Board and AACP CEO to improve performance; 2. Recommend improvements for Board development processes and programs; 3. Complete the analysis and recommend enhancements in the AACP governance model to optimize opportunities for member/citizen engagement in the work of AACP; 4. Insure that an adequate succession plan for AACP executive leaders is in place and understood by all; 5. Recommend process attributes for the CEO five-year review to be completed by June 2017. The Commission met at AACP headquarters in October 2015 and completed work on 4 of the charges. The governance review required additional examination and occurred over the months following the meeting in a series of conference calls. In November President Boyle asked the Argus Commission to also review and recommend revisions to the Board's current conflict of interest policy and practices. BOARD ASSESSMENT The Argus Commission reviewed several resource documents describing assessment practices of various nonprofit boards. There was general consensus that implementing a process of annual board self-assessment represents a best practice in nonprofit board continuous quality improvement. That being said, the Argus Commission noted that the AACP board has operated at a perceived high level of functionality, including successful implementation of four new board positions following the last major governance analysis in 2006-07. Some different approaches to and potential pitfalls associated with board assessment were discussed. Two that did not seem to offer the right balance of information for the investment of time and other resources were an entrance interview as part of the nomination process and a formal assessment of every board meeting. Members of the Commission reflected that we should strive to keep the length of the assessment as reasonable as possible. Two forms of review were identified as worthy of further exploration. The first is an annual self-assessment using an instrument like the one recently released by the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) in collaboration with Board Source (2). An exploration of its cost suggested that it would be approximately $1,000 annually but more specific information on its use and the analysis (e.g., benchmarking) was requested. The second form of input on board performance is an survey to be administered to those completing service on the board. The Commission discussed the timing for administering an annual assessment and agreed that it should be sent after the annual meeting to all those serving on the board the previous year. The results would be summarized and disseminated prior to the fall meeting for discussion in an executive session. For those completing service in July there could be a couple of questions to be used as the exit survey. An initial discussion of the topic of board self-assessment was docketed to the February board meeting agenda. The recommendation will be to implement an assessment in July/August 2016 as a pilot to see how useful the results are and based on this determine if an annual process should be implemented. BOARD ORIENTATION AND DEVELOPMENT Commission members reflected on the changes that had been implemented in the last five years to improve the on-boarding and orientation of newly elected board members. …

Cardiac Rehabilitation Enrollment and the Impact of Systematic Nursing Interventions for Postmyocardial Infarction and Stent Patients.

A randomized experimental design was used to determine the most effective intervention for enhancing cardiac rehabilitation (CR) enrollment for postmyocardial infarction and stent patients. The 104 subjects (70 males and 34 females; 23-87 years old) were patients with a discharge diagnosis of a myocardial infarction followed by a percutaneous coronary intervention, which included a percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty and the placement of one or more coronary stents. Regardless of the intervention, patients who received face-to-face nursing interventions were more likely to enroll in CR than were patients who had indirect interventions, χ(2)(3) = 32.84, p < .001. Patients who experienced an entrance interview were most likely to enroll, χ(2)(1) = 86.80, p < .001. Direct logistic regression determined that the full model was statistically significant for all predictors, χ(2)(5), 105.56, p < .001, with the strongest predictor, the entrance interview, having an odds ratio of 1.73.

Wisely and Well

In The Rachel Papers, Martin Amis portrays an Oxford entrance interview that takes an unexpected turn. The hero, Charles Highway, has planned every aspect of his application carefully. On discovering that his interviewer is young and politically active he quickly adapts his outfit and prepares to be as left-wing as possible. After the tense opening pleasantries the first question is, however, ‘do you like literature?’ Dr Knowd then dissects his pompous essays, pointing out the way they flaunt their cleverness while taking writers to task according to spurious and self-serving criteria. Just when the outcome seems inevitable, however, Charles is offered a place, because of the danger he might get worse if he was taken elsewhere. The parting advice is to do a lot of hard thinking, to ‘read the poems and work out whether you like them’.1 The hero is only temporarily chastened, and is soon wondering whether he might be better off at another college. The scene is neatly judged, though, and it turns away from a more predictable version of the interview encounter and the course of study beyond, where the naive enthusiasm of the young bibliophile runs into the harsh judgement of the professional critic, and is gradually tamed. (One of my friends tells his own story of this sort, wherein his attempt to attribute beauty to a poem was met with a derisive two-word snort of which the first word was indistinct but the second word was definitely ‘construct’.) Dr Knowd, for all his commitment to radical causes, maintains what must have seemed, in 1973, like an unfashionable commitment to pleasure and evaluation as two fundamental parts of literary study. They may be merely an apprenticeship – he suggests that ambitious theoretical perspectives could come later – but the scene's surprise value resides nevertheless in the endorsement of a love and respect for literature as the most important things an aspirant student might cultivate.

Admissions Criteria and Upper-Divisional Ratings as Predictors of Student Teaching Achievement in Music Education

Abstract The goal of this study was to explore relationships among entrance criteria, mid-degree assessment criteria, and student teaching success among music education students at a large midwestern university (N = 139). Data for this study consisted of admission information (background experiences, entrance interview rating sheets), upper-divisional ratings, and midterm student teaching evaluations. Data were collected from files of graduates admitted to the bachelor of music education program between the fall semesters of 2003 and 2009. Internal consistencies of the entrance interview scale (α = .79), the upper-divisional review scale (α = .74), and the midterm student teaching assessment (α = .95) were acceptable. Correlation and linear regression analyses revealed several potentially important predictors of student success at upper-divisional review (e.g., high school GPA, academic achievement, years of piano, high school performance experience, composite admissions ratings). However, no viable predictors of student teaching ratings were identified. The findings of this study perhaps suggest that the admissions and upper-divisional measures may more readily predict characteristics required for success in the rigorous musical and academic culture of this particular institution. Additional emphases on assessment criteria related directly to practical teaching skill or pedagogical content knowledge at the time of upper-divisional review may lead to more predictive relations to student teaching success.

Creating a Culture of Candor on Campus

Creating a Culture of Candor on Campus

Consumption of psychoactive substances among 535 women entering a Lyon prison (France) between June 2004 and December 2008

BackgroundIn France, recent data on the consumption of psychoactive substances (PASs) among women entering prison are virtually nonexistent. The objective of this study was to describe the characteristics of female entrants at Montluc prison in Lyon (France) and to estimate their PAS consumption. MethodsBetween June 1, 2004 and December 31, 2008, of 841 women entering the Lyon correctional facility, 535 had an entrance interview, conducted by a nurse, during which a questionnaire was systematically proposed; 306 detainees did not have this interview and could not be included in the study because of an immediate transfer to another prison or emergency hospitalization. Socioeconomic and incarceration characteristics, PAS consumption, as well as consumption level (occasional, regular, abusive or dependence) and psychological distress of the 535 interviewed detainees were systematically noted. This psychological distress was defined by the presence in the entrant talks or behavior suggesting clinical symptoms such as anxiety, depression, delusion, delirium, and mood or behavior disorders. Descriptive analysis was undertaken with the Chi2 test and Fisher's exact test for differences between the proportions observed. ResultsThe average age of the 534 responding detainees was 31.5years; 59.2% had had no ongoing professional activity in the 12months prior to incarceration, and 21.6% had already been imprisoned before; 37.5% of the entrants reported dependence on tobacco and 13.7% on alcohol; 6.6% reported regular, abusive use or dependence on cannabis, 20.4% on psychotropic medications, and 7.7% on other drugs (heroin, cocaine, synthetic drugs) in the 6months preceding their incarceration; 39.2% of the consumers at risk reported using at least two substances; 7.1% of detainees were on opioid substitution treatment. A multiple correspondence factor analysis was used to note specific characteristics of three groups of PAS consumers. ConclusionsMore frequent among young women detainees, overall PAS consumption was quite close to that of male entrants, was greater than in the general female population, and was very often accompanied by psychological distress. Effective screening upon entry into detention should be carried out so that female consumers can be offered psychological and/or psychiatric care adapted to a prison environment.

Consommation de substances psycho actives chez les personnes entrant en prison

The objective of this study was to describe the population of incoming prisoners in Lyon's prisons and to estimate the proportion of those who are drug users in order to adapt the psychological care which is made available at the time of entrance. During the entrance interview briefing session, a questionnaire was given to each new adult male inmate between January 1st and December 31st 2003. The mean age of new prisoners was 31 years old: 68.5% did not have regular employment in the last 12 months prior to their incarceration, and 52.8% had already been previously imprisoned. More than 64.0% of inmates declared either a regular use, an abusive use or dependence on tobacco, 16.5% on cannabis, 16.1% on alcohol, 2.5% on psychotropic medication, and 4.1% on other drugs (heroine, cocaine, or synthetic drugs). Moreover, 42.0% of drug users declared either a regular use, abusive consumption or dependence on at least two psycho active substances. These results confirm the need for effective screening for drug use upon entry into prison as a means of ensuring that appropriate psychological and/or psychiatric care of drug users, which is suitably adapted to the prison environment, can be provided.

Improving the Study of Customer In-store Behavior

Improved retail decisions can result from attempts to measure customer response to price, display, store layout, and other controllable variables. In this article, the author shows how the combination of entrance interviews and direct observation can provide management with more meaningful information from the study of customer in-store behavior.