SynthesisBMC medical education2016
The impact of large scale licensing examinations in highly developed countries: a systematic review.
Synthesis in BMC medical education, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Design, delivery and effectiveness of health practitioner regulation systems: an integrative review.Human resources for health · 2023Pooled it
- Factors associated with medical students’ scores on the National Licensing Exam in Peru: a systematic reviewJournal of educational evaluation for health professions · 2022Pooled it
- The International Landscape of Medical Licensing Examinations: A Typology Derived From a Systematic Review.International journal of health policy and management · 2018Pooled it
- Using AI in healthcare education: a rapid review and commentary.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2026Article
- Evolving Global Migration Trends: Post-Migration Experiences of Iranian Dentists Attempting to Obtain Credential Recognition in Canada.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Peruvian medical residency selection: a portrayal of scores, distribution, and predictors of 28,872 applicants between 2019 and 2023.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- Large Language Models in Worldwide Medical Exams: Platform Development and Comprehensive Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Article
- Beyond multiple choice: Clinical simulation as a rigorous and inclusive method for assessing genetic counseling competencies.Journal of genetic counseling · 2024Article
- Impact of anesthetist licensing examination on quality of education in Ethiopia: a qualitative study of faculty and student perceptions.BMC medical education · 2023Article
- Ethiopian Anesthetist Licensing Examination: A Qualitative Study of Concerns and Unintended Consequences.Advances in medical education and practice · 2023Article
- The Ethiopian Anesthetist Licensing Examination and Associated Improvement in in-School Student Performance: A Retrospective Study.Advances in medical education and practice · 2023Article
- Associations between Drinking Behaviors and Meaning in Life: Evidence from Primary Care Professionals in China.Nutrients · 2022Article
- Licensing exams in Canada: a closer look at the validity of the MCCQE Part II.Canadian medical education journal · 2022Article
- Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examinations and performance in future practice.Canadian medical education journal · 2022Article
- Essential steps in the development, implementation, evaluation and quality assurance of the written part of the Swiss federal licensing examination for human medicine.GMS journal for medical education · 2022Article
- Dental foundation training in the COVID-19 era - the national recruitment lottery.British dental journal · 2021Article
- Dedicated to whom? Bias in board preparations.The clinical teacher · 2021Article
- Association between graduates' factors and success rate on the Saudi Pharmacist Licensure Examination: A single-Institution cross-sectional study.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2020Article
- An international stakeholder survey of the role of chiropractic qualifying examinations:The Journal of chiropractic education · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundTo investigate the existing evidence base for the validity of large-scale licensing examinations including their impact.
methodsSystematic review against a validity framework exploring: Embase (Ovid Medline); Medline (EBSCO); PubMed; Wiley Online; ScienceDirect; and PsychINFO from 2005 to April 2015. All papers were included when they discussed national or large regional (State level) examinations for clinical professionals, linked to examinations in early careers or near the point of graduation, and where success was required to subsequently be able to practice. Using a standardized data extraction form, two independent reviewers extracted study characteristics, with the rest of the team resolving any disagreement. A validity framework was used as developed by the American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, and National Council on Measurement in Education to evaluate each paper's evidence to support or refute the validity of national licensing examinations.
results24 published articles provided evidence of validity across the five domains of the validity framework. Most papers (n = 22) provided evidence of national licensing examinations relationships to other variables and their consequential validity. Overall there was evidence that those who do well on earlier or on subsequent examinations also do well on national testing. There is a correlation between NLE performance and some patient outcomes and rates of complaints, but no causal evidence has been established.
conclusionsThe debate around licensure examinations is strong on opinion but weak on validity evidence. This is especially true of the wider claims that licensure examinations improve patient safety and practitioner competence.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.