The Minnesota Method: A Learner-Driven, Entrustable Professional Activity-Based Comprehensive Program of Assessment for Medical Students

Problem Assessment has been the Achilles heel of competency-based medical education. It requires a program of assessment in which outcomes are clearly defined, students know where they are in the development of the competencies, and what the next steps are to attaining them. Achieving this goal in a feasible manner has been elusive with traditional assessment methods alone. The Education in Pediatrics Across the Continuum (EPAC) program at the University of Minnesota developed a robust program of assessment that has utility and recognizes when students are ready for the undergraduate to graduate medical education transition. Approach The authors developed a learner-driven program of assessment in the foundational clinical training of medical students in the EPAC program based on the Core Entrustable Professional Activities for Entering Residency (Core EPAs). Frequent workplace-based assessments, coupled with summative assessments, informed a quarterly clinical competency committee and individualized learning plans. The data were displayed on real time dashboards for the students to review. Outcomes Over 4 cohorts from 2015 to 2019, students (n = 13) averaged approximately 200 discrete Core EPA workplace-based assessments during their foundational clinical training year. Assessments were completed by an average of 9 different preceptors each month across 8 different specialties. The data were displayed in a way students and faculty could monitor development and inform a clinical competency committee's ability to determine readiness to transition to advanced clinical rotations and residency. Next Steps The next steps include continuing to scale the program of assessment to a larger cohort of students.