The National Jurist: “Enrollments drop at most schools- again”
To ensure that aspiring attorneys receive accurate and up-to-date information on trends in the law admissions process, Kaplan Test Prep annually surveys admissions officers from the 203 American Bar Association-approved law schools across the United States. The survey data helps Kaplan provided informed insights to the thousands of pre-law students we work with each year. Click Kaplan Test Prep’s 2013 Survey of Law School Admissions Officers for a PDF of the results.
Among the highlights of this year’s survey:
Did your school reduce the overall incoming class size for 2013 compared to 2012?
How likely is it that your law school will reduce its class size for the 2013—2014 school year?
How confident are you that law school applications will begin to rebound in the next application cycle?
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: “The U.S. legal education system needs to undergo significant changes to better prepare future attorneys for the changing employment landscape and legal profession.”
To what extent do you agree or disagree with President Barack Obama’s recent comments that law schools should think about condensing their current three year programs into two year programs for all JD candidates?
As AACP Launches its Foundations of the Future Pharmacist Program, the Partnership Will Expand Access to Preparing for the Pharmacy School Admissions Exam
Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO)
Press Contacts: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanPCATPrep
Maureen Thielemans, mthielemans@aacp.org, 703-739-2330, ext. 1022,
Twitter: @AACPharmacy
New York, NY (October 14, 2013) – The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, the national organization representing pharmacy education in the United States, announced today that Kaplan Test Prep is its official test prep provider for the Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT), required for admission by over 75% of U.S. pharmacy schools. The announcement comes in conjunction with the launch of the Kaplan Test Prep and AACP co-sponsored Foundations of the Future Pharmacist Program, which seeks to make PCAT prep more accessible to all students. As part of this program, Kaplan will significantly reduce tuition for its PCAT prep programs (on site; online On Demand; and live, online Classroom Anywhere), offering more tuition assistance, and giving 250 scholarships to AACP to award at its own discretion.
A critical piece of the pharmacy school admissions process, the PCAT is scored on a scale from 200-600 with the median being a 400. The 90th percentile is typically a 430. Many pharmacy schools require that applicants score above a particular level on the exam in order to be considered as a candidate for admissions.
“We applaud AACP in its efforts to enable more individuals to enter a field with promising career opportunities, and are pleased to support this goal by providing greater access to PCAT prep for pre-pharmacy students,” said Amjed Saffarini, Vice President of Graduate Programs, Kaplan Test Prep.
Saffarini noted that studies of PCAT scores and pharmacy school GPA show a correlation between success on the PCAT and success in pharmacy school. Members of AACP believe that students who prepare for the PCAT are more likely to succeed in pharmacy school as well.
With a low 3.1% unemployment rate (less than half the national average) and a median annual salary of nearly $115,000, pharmacist is currently ranked as the third best job in the United States, according to the 2013 U.S. News & World Report Best Jobs ranking — just behind dentist and registered nurse.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects pharmacist positions to increase 25% between 2010 and 2020, from 274,000 to 345,000. Advances in healthcare and technology, coupled with great career opportunities, make now an ideal time to pursue pharmacy school, for those with the interest and drive for it.
AACP CEO & EVP, Lucinda L. Maine, Ph.D., R.Ph., said, “AACP looks forward to working with Kaplan to increase access to PCAT preparation for prospective students seeking careers in pharmacy.” Dr. Maine also added, “This type of partnership assists us in meeting our strategic goal of assisting our member institutions in attracting, motivating, developing and retaining the highest quality and most diverse students.”
The initiative to make PCAT prep more accessible comes on the heels of a decline in the number of exam takers. In the most recently recorded academic year (2012-2013), the PCAT was administered 28,400 times to aspiring pharmacists , its lowest level in nearly a decade. According to the Pharmacy Manpower Project, a shortfall of as many as 157,000 pharmacists is predicted by 2020, which, added with the projected physician shortage, could have a sharply negative effect on patients and their access to healthcare.
About the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy
Founded in 1900, AACP is the national organization representing the interests of pharmacy education. AACP is comprised of all accredited colleges and schools with pharmacy degree programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, including more than 6,500 faculty, 62,500 students enrolled in professional programs and 5,100 individuals pursuing graduate study. To learn more about AACP, visit www.aacp.org.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO)
Press Contacts: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Twitter: @KapTestNews
New York, NY (October 11, 2013) – As the Supreme Court revisits the future of affirmative action with Schuette v. the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, recent data from Kaplan Test Prep shows that among admissions officers, those at law schools and medical schools are the most concerned about the potential negative impact of a ban on race-conscious admissions policies, while the gatekeepers at colleges and business schools are much less concerned as a whole.
Sixty-one percent of law school admissions officers surveyed said they believe a ban on affirmative action would hurt efforts to foster racial diversity among their student populations, while at medical schools, a slight majority (52%) expressed similar concern. In contrast, only 33% of colleges, 34% of business schools, and 40% of graduate schools said they believe a ban on race-conscious admissions policies would negatively impact racial diversity at their schools.
Among the other findings from Kaplan Test Prep’s 2013 admissions officers survey series:
Schools Overwhelmingly Consider Racial Diversity Important: Of the colleges surveyed, 96% say that it is important for their school’s administration to have a racially diverse student body. A strong majority of medical schools surveyed (83%) also consider racial diversity in their student population important; law schools were unanimous (100%), business and grad schools nearly so (99% and 98%, respectively). A lesser majority of students agree: in a Kaplan survey of nearly 700 college applicants in June, 60% said it’s “very important” or “somewhat important” for the college they attend to have a racially diverse student body.
Affirmative Action Policies Most Prevalent Among Med Schools; Least So Among B-Schools: 16% of business schools, 21% of colleges, 37% of graduate schools, 45% of law schools and 57% of medical schools surveyed reported having race-conscious affirmative action policies currently in place. Ten percent of colleges preferred not to say. (Eight states currently ban the use of race conscious affirmative action: AZ, CA, FL, NE, NH, OK, TX, WA.)
Most Believe Policies Have Been Effective: Among the schools with affirmative action policies, a strong majority feel these have been effective in fostering racial diversity in their schools (89% of colleges, 96% of law schools, 85% of medical schools, 78% of business schools and 96% of graduate schools).
The findings are notable as the Supreme Court returns to session with a high-profile affirmative action case on the docket: Schuette v. the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, which stems from a 2006 statewide referendum in Michigan, in which voters approved a ban on race as a factor in decision-making in public education, employment and contracting. A coalition of interest groups and individuals has argued that the ban violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Sixth Circuit Court agreed, overturning the ban in 2011. Bill Schuette, Michigan’s current state attorney general, has brought the case to the Supreme Court.
“Our data shows that medical and law schools rely the most on affirmative action policies to foster racially diverse student populations, and are the most concerned about the potential negative impact of a ban on race conscious policies,” said Seppy Basili, vice president at Kaplan Test Prep. “But it’s safe to say that most schools value racial diversity, and if affirmative action is eliminated, it’s likely that they’ll seek to achieve a diverse population other ways, including finding other proxies for race to bring diversity to campus and seeking partnerships to improve the pipeline of academically talented, underrepresented students.”
To speak with a Kaplan Test Prep expert about the survey results, please contact Russell Schaffer at 212.453.7538 or russell.schaffer@kaplan.com.
*Admissions officers from 381 of the nation’s top national, regional and liberal arts colleges and universities, as determined by U.S. News & World Report, were polled by telephone between July and August 2013.
**Admissions officers from 121 of the nation’s 203 American Bar Association-approved law schools were polled by telephone between July and September 2013.
**Admissions officers from 79 medical schools across the country (71 accredited by the Association of American Medical Colleges and eight accredited by the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine) were polled by telephone between July and September 2013.
+Admissions officers from 146 top business schools around the country were polled by telephone between July and September 2013.
++Admissions officers from 93 top graduate schools, as determined by U.S. News & World Report, were polled by telephone between July and September 2013.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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