EMT Student Self-Confidence and Its Effect on a Summative Examination

Objective—The connection between academic performance and self-efficacy (i.e., self-confidence) is well-established in many disciplines. Yet this relationship among entry-level EMT students remains to be determined. This study seeks to identify a correlation to serve as a predictive measure between EMT student self-efficacy and academic performance on a summative EMT exam. Student self-confidence scores were compared in relation to their respective summative Fisdap EMT Readiness Exam 2.0 (ERE2) scores.

Method—A retrospective analysis of the ERE2 was performed utilizing Fisdap educational data. Fisdap is an online database for EMS and healthcare education. Analysis employed the Fisdap precourse general self-efficacy evaluation. Multivariate linear regression analyses were conducted using robust standard errors while controlling for potential confounders.

Results—A sample of 11,680 EMT students was included for analysis. Students scoring above the mean on the general self-efficacy evaluation scored an average of over six points higher on the ERE2 (B=6.44, p<0.0001).

Conclusion— Results indicated that student-reported self-confidence is a positive predictor of success on the ERE2. Similar to other fields, self-efficacy of EMT students appears to have a positive relationship with end-of-course academic performance. As EMT training grows in demand and scope, educators must be highly cognizant of their incoming students’ emotional readiness and self-efficacy. The results of this study might aid the efficient allocation of educational resources in the classroom and beyond.