Dental students' perception of the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE): The Taibah University experience, Almadinah Almunawwarah, KSA

OBJECTIVE: The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is an assessment tool used to objectively evaluate clinical competence in medical schools and, more recently, in the nursing profession as well. However, few studies have been conducted to elicit the views of dental students in KSA regarding the OSCE. The present study was designed to explore, evaluate, and analyse students' perceptions of the OSCE and to explore the strengths and weaknesses of this assessment tool as perceived by dental students. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional analytical observational study using a survey design. It took place in the College of Dentistry, Taibah University, KSA. The study sample consisted of third, fourth, and fifth-year students who took the OSCE assessment during their studies. RESULTS: Of 138 invited students, 119 responded (response rate of 86.2%). Almost half the students (47.1%) agreed that the OSCE exam was fair, while 19.3% agreed that a broad range of clinical skills were included in the OSCE exam. A low percentage of students believed to a great extent that the scores were standardised; however, the practicality and usefulness of the OSCE was questioned. Students perceived that issues pertaining to personality, ethnicity, and gender would not impact the scores. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study indicated that the OSCE is a meaningful and fair assessment tool for clinical skills.