Exam anxiety in the undergraduate medical students of Taibah University

Abstract

Background and objectives: Assessment is perceived to create highly stressful environment among medical students. Several studies have reported exam-related anxiety symptoms but the contributing factors seem to differ across institutions. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of exam anxiety, gender differences and the variables that moderate exam anxiety among students of a Saudi medical school.

Methods: A cross-section study was done on 5th year medical students by administering a 12-statement self-administered questionnaire. The degree of exam anxiety was gauged by a visual analog scale.

Results: Of 125 students, 111 responded (response rate 89%). About 65% students experienced exam anxiety due to various reasons. Studying all night before exam (28 students; 25.2%) and extensive course load (26 students; 23.4%) were the major confounding factors. Female students experienced more stress due to extensive course load as compared with male students (p = .00).

Conclusions: The data about the identified risk factors for exam anxiety can help medical educators to deeply understand the reasons for exam anxiety. There is a need to reassess the amount of study material in undergraduate medical curricula and students need to organize their time management skills to cope with exam anxiety.

Acknowledgments

Authors are grateful to the medical research center, College of Medicine, Taibah University, for rendering technical and administrative support throughout this research project. We also acknowledge the efforts of Mr. Muhammad Asad Malik in developing the Endnote library and typing the manuscript. Lastly, we appreciate insightful opinions and views of all respondents who participated in this study.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare they have no financial or non-financial competing interests.

Notes on contributors

Prof Gamal Khairy FRCS, MS, FBS is Professor and consultant of surgery at College of Medicine, Taibah University with special interest and few publications in medical education field.

Dr. Khalid I. Khoshhal (FRCS Ed, ABOS) is a Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Vice president of Taibah University for graduate studies and research, Department of Orthopedics, College of Medicine, Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. His main research interest is in the field of Pediatric Orthopedics and medical education.

Salman Y. Guraya, FRCS is professor of surgery at the College of Medicine, Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. He has also done Masters in medical education from the University of Dundee and has vast experience in assessment, medical professionalism, and in incorporating modern tools in teaching and learning. He is a member of lead research group and visiting faculty of the Academy for Advanced International Minimally Invasive Surgery, Milan, Italy.

Shaista S. Guraya, PhD is assistant professor of radiology at the College of Medicine, Taibah University, Saudi Arabia. She has recently done Masters in medical education from Maastricht University. She has special interest in curriculum planning, accreditation, and interprofessional education.

All authors listed have contributed sufficiently to the paper to be included as authors. KK conceived the original idea for the project and edited the various versions of the manuscript. GK drafted the first version and subsequent revisions of the manuscript. SG carried out the data collection and analysis, SS worked on the design of the project and helped in data collection and analysis.

Funding

The publication of this supplement has been made possible with the generous financial support of the Dr Hamza Alkholi Chair for Developing Medical Education in KSA.