COM – Standardized Scoring Policy for M1 and M2 Biomedical Sciences Courses

Policy Number: 3349-AC-429
Effective Date: 07/01/2020
Updated: 06/01/2026
Reviewed: —
Responsible Department: Office of the Dean, and Medical Education, College of Medicine
Approval Authority: Dean, College of Medicine
Responsible Office: Office of the Dean, and Medical Education, College of Medicine

A. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to standardize the scoring structure for M1 and M2 courses.

B. Scope

This policy applies to the biomedical sciences courses of the M1 and M2 curriculum unless otherwise noted.

C. Definitions

1. “Course Directors” refer to the appointed faculty members who are responsible for the overall design, implementation, student assessment within and evaluation of a credit-bearing course.
2. “Final Course Score” refers to the overall total score that includes the weighted scores from weekly quizzes and the midcourse exam.

D. Policy Statement

1. All biomedical science courses in the M1 and M2 curriculum greater than five (5) weeks in length will calculate the Final Course Score using the following formula:
   1. Weekly quizzes will comprise five percent (5%) of the Final Course Score. The weekly quiz score will be adjusted to exclude scores from time permitted as allowable excused absences as described in the College of Medicine Attendance at Instructional Sessions policy 3349-AC-418.
   2. Midcourse exams will comprise thirty-five to forty-five percent (35-45%) of the Final Course Score.
   3. Final exams will be constructed as NBME Customized Assessments and will comprise forty to sixty percent (40 to 60%) of the Final Course Score in courses employing a single midcourse examination and will comprise no less than forty percent (40%) of the Final Course Score in those courses employing multiple midcourse exams or additional assignments.
      1. The length of the exam should not exceed 150 items.
      2. The overall exam difficulty (p-value) should approximate 0.82, meaning that the expected NBME average score would be eighty-two percent (82%). A typical acceptable range of average exam difficulty is a difficulty of 0.75-0.85.
      3. Courses that use practical laboratory exam score or other assessments as a portion of the Final or Midterm Exams should seek approval from the Pre-clerkship Curriculum Subcommittee and Curriculum Committee. If use of other assessments impacts the above approved distribution of overall score, the specific grade weighting of each aspect of the course should be presented in the request for approval.
   4. Pass/Fail Components: All other course assessments (e.g., evidence-based medicine, self-directed learning, reflective essay assignments) will be listed as distinct pass/fail components in the list of course grading criteria. Courses that additionally require passing of the final exam as a distinct pass/fail component(s) to pass the course must stipulate this clearly in the syllabus.
2. To promote assessment integrity, fairness, and validity, courses are expected to regularly review and update quizzes and examinations to ensure alignment with current learning objectives and instructional content. Examinations should not be administered in identical form across academic years; each offering should include a meaningful proportion of new or substantially revised items. Remediation assessments must provide an equivalent but distinct evaluation of the relevant learning objectives and should not replicate the original examination.
3. Students are afforded one attempt at remediating a course.
4. Any exceptions to the requirements described above must be approved by the Pre-clerkship Curriculum Subcommittee and Curriculum Committee before the syllabus is published and the course starts.
5. All assessments must meet quality standards set forth by the College of Medicine and Curriculum Committee. Courses whose assessments do not meet quality standards will be reviewed by the Curriculum Committee during the standard annual and triennial review processes.

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