Kingston had a pass rate of 61% – the only university to score below 70% – among its students sitting the exam for the first time, according to GPhC papers published ahead of the regulator’s council meeting last week (September 7).

The University of Sunderland claimed the top spot, with a pass rate of 93% (see below for a full breakdown).

A Kingston University spokesperson pointed out that the assessment was taken a year after students finished their pharmacy degrees, but added that it is comparing candidates’ exam achievements to their university performance “to see if any trends could be identified”.

The university is also undertaking “further work” to examine where additional support for students during their pre-reg training provider can be given, including “face-to-face support from tutors” as well as a “peer support programme” with pharmacy alumni who passed their registration exam.

The GPhC announced in July that the overall pass rate for all students sitting the June exam was 78% – 17 percentage points lower than the previous year's June sitting.

At the time, the regulator noted this fall was “more consistent with previous pass rates for June sittings”.

The average pass rate in the June 2016 exam was 95% – the highest since 2012 – when the lowest pass rate was the University of Lancashire's 86%.

Variation between sectors

There was an 18 percentage point variation between first-attempt candidates from community and hospital sectors in June 2017, with 76% of candidates from community placements passing the exam, compared with 94% of their hospital-based colleagues.

What was the first-time pass rate for each university?