Program Director Highlights from the Spring 2014 PD Update Program Director – Christine Odell
Metropolitan State University of Denver
1) What is the name of your institution?
Metropolitan State University of Denver
2) How long have you been a PD at this institution? Seven years
3) How many students are currently in your program(s)? There are 32 students in the clinical portion.
4) Do you teach any class(es)? If so, which one(s)? I teach Upper Extremity Injury Evaluation, Foundations of Athletic Health Care, Anatomical Kinesiology, General Medical Topics in Athletic Training, Therapeutic Modalities in Athletic Training and Administrative and Research Topics in Athletic Training.
5) Do you use the BOC Self Assessment Exam(s) as tools to assist your students in preparing for the exam? How? Yes. I encourage my students to purchase at least one, and I use the small free example to show students how questions are formatted. We go through these as a group and discuss how the question is written. I try to focus their attention away from wanting to know their ‘score’ on these exams.
6) How do you prepare your students for the BOC exam?
I actually bring up the BOC web site and I do NOT log in. I then take them through all the information that is public. I start with the Candidate Handbook, move to the scheduling area and then the style guide. We discuss the style guide in depth. After this, all students are required to purchase the RD/PA6 because we use it to create assignments. I do not hold study/review sessions. I only hold reviews in content delivery. I feel when they reach this point, they have to learn how to organize their own studying. Therefore, my job is to focus on what they cannot control: knowing what they can and cannot take into the exam room, how the exam is formatted, etc. I take that unknown out of the equation so they can focus on studying the actual content.
7) What study materials do you recommend to your students? I recommend all the text books used in our curriculum and having access to the RD/PA6 and a good medical dictionary – either Tabor’s or Steadman’s. Otherwise I feel it is very overwhelming for students.
8) Please provide some tips for how you prepare your students for entering the real world (e.g. completing the BOC paperwork post-exam; state licensure/registration/certification; NPI numbers).
During the admin class this is actually one of our final discussions. I go over the BOC web site again and go through the “Certified” section and log in with my credentials and show them what I have to do.
9) Do you have any tips, suggestions or questions for other PDs? If you have not already, explore the BOC web page. It holds all essential information. If you do not understand something, call the BOC office. It is always surprising when you think you have very unique situation and they say, “It happens all the time. Here is what you need to do…” They are extremely approachable and helpful.
If you are a PD who would like to be considered for inclusion in the Featured Program Highlights, please submit an email with your interest to StacyA@bocatc.org.
