Abstract
Background: Assessment strategies are a key component of higher education as they measure students’ learning outcomes and academic progress. In undergraduate programs, summative theoretical examinations commonly include Short Essay Questions (SEQs) and Best Choice Questions (BCQs). Gaining insight into students’ perceptions of these examination formats is important for improving assessment quality and ensuring effective evaluation.
Objective: To examine undergraduate students’ feedback regarding the summative theoretical examination pattern and to identify their preferences and perceptions toward SEQs and BCQs.
Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among allied health sciences students residing in the New Campus Girls Hostel, Peoples University of Medical and Health Sciences (PUMHS), Nawabshah. A total of 278 allied health students were included in the study using a non-probability sampling technique. Female students who were enrolled in allied health programs, aged 18 years and above, and who gave informed consent were included in the study. Students who were unwilling to participate were excluded. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire consisting of two sections: socio-demographic characteristics and questions related to the summative theoretical examination pattern. The collected data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 25. Frequencies and percentages were calculated, and the results were presented in the form of tables and figures.
Results: The mean age of the participants was 21.48 ± 1.64 years. All participants were female allied health sciences students residing in the New Campus Girls Hostel, PUMHS, and Nawabshah. Most students were single, belonged to urban areas, and were from a middle socioeconomic background. Best Choice Questions (BCQs) were identified as the most preferred examination format. The majority of students perceived BCQs as easy to attempt, objective in scoring, and effective in assessing theoretical knowledge. Students also reported that BCQs helped reduce examination stress and supported better academic preparation. Furthermore, a large proportion of participants favored a combined examination pattern, including both BCQs and Short Essay Questions (SEQs), as it was perceived to improve overall knowledge assessment and conceptual understanding in summative theoretical examinations
Conclusion: The study concluded that undergraduate students demonstrated a stronger preference for BCQs; however, most participants recommended using both SEQs and BCQs together to achieve a more balanced and comprehensive assessment. Incorporating students’ feedback may assist educators in designing fair and effective examination systems