A large-scale multicentre study of academic resilience and wellbeing in pharmacy education

Objective. Health care students are at particular risk of stress and exposure to adverse events, negatively affecting wellbeing and performance and leading to increased attrition. Academic resilience (AR) has been identified as one factor helping mitigate such negative effects in students. Despite this, there is limited research exploring the topic in pharmacy education.

Methods. Using a cross-sectional survey design, students attending three schools of pharmacy in the United Kingdom (N=1161) completed psychometric measures of AR and wellbeing. Comparative, correlational and regression analyses were conducted, exploring the relationship between AR and wellbeing.

Results. AR and wellbeing were significantly lower in pharmacy students compared to other student populations. AR was a positive correlate and predictor for wellbeing. AR was highest in first year students, declined over subsequent years of study, and varied by pharmacy school and gender but not ethnicity.

Conclusion. Introducing and embedding strategies to enhance AR in pharmacy education may improve wellbeing and performance and reduce attrition.