The Daily Universe (Brigham Young University): “BYU students excel at medical school applications”
Also in Survey: While Emphasizing Personal Background Has Little Effect
on Admissions Officers, Nearly Half Say MCAT Needs to Focus More
on Personal Traits Such as Empathy and Integrity
Available for Interview: Medical School Admissions Expert
Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO)
Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Carina Wong, carina.wong@kaplan.com, 212.453.7571
New York, NY (October 6, 2010) – Many aspiring doctors are drawn to medicine because of a personal connection with illness, according to a Kaplan survey of admissions officers at 83 medical schools across the United States, which found that 90% report that it’s “somewhat” or “very” common for applicants to include in their application a story of personal illness or illness in their family. Also a running theme among medical school applicants is having other doctors in the family – 69% of admissions officers report it to be “somewhat” or “very” common for applicants to include in their application mention of a family member who is a doctor. For the most part, though, referencing a personal connection with medicine makes no difference in an applicant’s chances – only 24% of admissions officers say highlighting a personal or family illness in an interview or essay helps an applicant’s cause. 75% say mentioning a family member who is a doctor makes no difference.
“Our interpretation is that talking about a personal or family illness or about your family medical profession pedigree is a bit like eating chicken soup to treat a cold – it probably doesn’t help much, but it doesn’t hurt either,” said Amjed Saffarini, executive director, pre-health programs, Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions. “What’s ironic is that while medical school admissions officers are much more focused on the MCAT score and GPA than on personal stories, nearly half want to see the MCAT focus more on qualities like empathy, integrity and ethics.”
Other key Kaplan survey results:
For more information about Kaplan’s annual survey of medical school admissions officers or to schedule an interview with a Kaplan expert, please contact Russell Schaffer at 212.453.7538 or russell.schaffer@kaplan.com
*The survey was conducted by phone in August 2010 as part of Kaplan’s annual survey of admissions officers at AAMC-approved medical schools. Kaplan also conducts surveys of admissions officers at colleges, business schools, graduate schools and law schools.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com), a division of Kaplan, Inc., 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 and a complete array of books, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as English language and professional licensing exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
Mobile-Friendly Site Developed by Usablenet Allows Students to Register for Free Admissions or Practice Test Events, Learn More About Kaplan Course
Offerings and Search Class Schedules and Locations
Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO)
Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Carina Wong, carina.wong@kaplan.com, 212.453.7571
New York, NY (October 4, 2010) – With 40% of adults accessing the Internet from a mobile device,* Kaplan Test Prep has launched its enhanced site (www.kaptest.com) for smartphones. Now aspiring college, graduate, business, law and medical school students can easily register for a free Kaplan event like a practice test or admissions seminar, learn more about test prep options offered by Kaplan and look for a course being offered in their area from their iPhone®, BlackBerry®, or other mobile devices with browsers. To experience the site from a non-mobile device, visit www.um2go.com/www.kaptest.com.
“As teens, college students and aspiring professionals increasingly embrace online learning as an integral part of their educational experience, Kaplan is continually enhancing the way we deliver our services in order to reach them in ways that are relevant and best fit their busy and diverse lifestyles,” said Jason Moss, vice president, Kaplan Test Prep “In addition to learning about course offerings from virtually anywhere using their mobile devices, users can learn how to prepare for exams like the SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, LSAT and MCAT from virtually anywhere with our Anywhere courses – Kaplan’s interactive virtual classroom, which brings learning directly to students’ computers using video, audio, instant chat, whiteboard, polling, and screen-sharing.”
“We’re thrilled to see our solution deliver such a successful mobile experience for students considering Kaplan to prepare for a number of important admissions tests,” said Nick Taylor, president of Usablenet. Taylor explains that Usablenet Mobile is a fully managed service that leverages the features and functionality of a company’s existing website and extends it to all mobile devices worldwide in approximately eight weeks, requiring no client IT or Web design resources.
As the test prep industry leader, Kaplan has pioneered the delivery of test prep resources over the years. Most recently, in 2006, Kaplan became the first test prep company to bring SAT prep directly to students’ iPods. In 2009, Kaplan announced the availability of Kaplan SAT Flashcubes, the test prep industry’s first ever SAT prep application available on iTunes®, for the iPhone® and iPod touch®. In 2010, in its new GMAT prep course, Kaplan launched the industry’s first fully interactive online center, where students can manage their course progress, access online resources such as b-school video-on-demand, connect with their teachers or fellow classmates, network with future MBAs from around the world and more.
*Mobile Access 2010, Pew Internet & American Life project
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com), a division of Kaplan, Inc., 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 and a complete array of books, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as English language and professional licensing exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
About Usablenet
Usablenet works with leading brands to translate their existing websites content and functionality to mobile Web and app interfaces. The solution requires no IT resources on the client side, works on all mobile, tablet, kiosk, and assistive platforms worldwide and can be implemented in eight to ten weeks. The platform extends marketing, e-commerce, and client service efforts to their customers’ mobile phones. Usablenet customers include top companies, such as FedEx, Kenneth Cole, American Eagle, Marriott, Jet Blue, Sprint, Walgreens, Amtrak, and Estée Lauder. Founded in 2000, Usablenet is a private company headquartered in New York City with offices in Italy. For more information, visit www.usablenet.com or on Twitter @Usablenet.
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The National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN exam) has one purpose: To determine if it’s safe for a test taker to begin practice as an entry-level nurse. It is significantly different from any test in nursing school. While nursing school exams are knowledge-based, the NCLEX-RN tests application and analysis using the nursing knowledge learned in school. Test takers are evaluated on how well they can use critical thinking skills to make nursing judgments.
Brief history of the NCLEX-RN: From 1870 through 1944, each state wrote its own rules, regulations and licensure examinations for aspiring nurses. Because this made it difficult for nurses to move from state to state, in 1944, the National League for Nursing created the State Board Test Pool Examination (SBTPE), which by 1952, all states had adopted – though they each mandated different passing scores. In 1978, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) assumed responsibility for the exam. In 1982, the NCSBN reduced the number of questions from 720 to 480. In 1983, it was reduced further to 370. Today, each test taker answers a minimum of 75 questions to a maximum of 265 questions. Regardless of how many questions a test taker answers, each will be given 15 experimental questions. In April 2010, the NCSBN raised the passing standard by increasing the number of questions that NCLEX-RN® test takers must answer correctly. While this will make the test somewhat harder to pass statistically, the questions themselves will not become any more difficult. The NCBSN votes on a proposed raising of the bar every three years and in the past 15 years has voted to raise the passing standard four times.
Test Facts:
*NCLEX-RN® is a registered trademark of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc.
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