Relationship Between Dental Students' Pre-Admission Record and Performance on the Comprehensive Basic Science Examination.

The Comprehensive Basic Science Examination (CBSE) is the entrance examination for oral and maxillofacial surgery, but its implementation among dental students is a relatively recent and unintended use. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between pre-admission data and performance on the CBSE for dental students at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CDM). This study followed a retrospective cohort, examining data for the CDM Classes of 2014-19. Data collected were Dental Admission Test (DAT) and CBSE scores and undergraduate GPAs for 49 CDM students who took the CBSE from September 2013 to July 2016. The results showed that the full regression model did not demonstrate significant predictive capability (F[8,40]=1.70, p=0.13). Following stepwise regression, only the DAT Perceptual Ability score remained in the final model (F[1,47]=7.97, p<0.01). Variations in DAT Perceptual Ability scores explained 15% of the variability in CBSE scores (R2=0.15). This study found that, among these students, pre-admission data were poor predictors of CBSE performance.