Professional Licensing Exam Pass Rates

Licensing Exam Reporting Methodology

The ADEX Dental Examination is administered by the Commission on Dental Competency Assessments for senior dental students. The reported passing rate represents the number of Doctor of Dental Surgery graduates from each class who pass all five parts of the ADEX on the first try divided by all first time examinees. Scores are obtained from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry and are updated each year when available.

The State Board of Law Examiners administers the Maryland bar examination twice each year in February and July. Pass rates for University of Maryland Carey School of Law Juris Doctor graduates through 2015 are reported in the Standard 509 Information Report by the American Bar Association.  Pass rates beginning with 2016 are reported by the ABA in their Bar Passage Outcomes Report and are updated each year when available. The reported passing rate represents the number of Juris Doctor graduates who pass the Maryland bar examination on the first try each year divided by all first-time examinees.

The United States Medical Licensing Examination is a three-step examination for medical licensure in the United States and is sponsored by the Federation of State Medical Boards and the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). The Step 2 Clinical Knowledge exam is typically administered to fourth-year medical students. Scores are reported by the NBME for exams administered between July 1 and June 30 each year. Pass rates for University of Maryland School of Medicine medical students are obtained from the School of Medicine and are updated when available. The reported passing rate represents the number of examinees who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first-time examinees.

The Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy reports pass rate information for the National Physical Therapy Exam. The reported passing rate represents the number of graduates from each class year who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first-time examinees.

The National Council Licensure Examination is a nationwide examination for the licensing of nurses in the United States and Canada. NCLEX examinations are developed and owned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN). The NCSBN administers these examinations on behalf of the Maryland Board of Nursing, which reports scores for graduates from the University of Maryland School of Nursing Bachelor of Nursing (BSN) and Clinical Nurse Leader (MS) programs. The reported passing rate represents the number of examinees between July 1 and June 30 each year who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first-time examinees.

The North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination measures a candidate's knowledge of the practice of pharmacy and is administered by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. The NABP reports the results of all candidates who reported graduating from one of the reported schools/colleges of pharmacy and took the exam within the same year. The reported passing rate for the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy represents the number of graduates who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first time examinees who graduated that year.

The Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination combines federal- and state-specific questions to test the pharmacy jurisprudence knowledge of prospective pharmacists and is administered by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy.  The NABP reports the results of all candidates who reported graduating from on the reported schools/colleges of pharmacy and took the exam within the same year.  The reported passing rate for the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy represents the number of graduates who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first time examinees who graduated that year.  Approximately 2/3 of graduates from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy are licensed in Maryland.

The Licensed Graduate Social Work exam is administered by the Association of Social Work Boards and reported by the Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners. The reported passing rate for the University of Maryland School of Social Work represents the number of Master of Social Work graduates who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first time examinees who graduated that year.

The Licensed Clinical Social Work exam is administered by the Association of Social Work Boards and reported by the Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners.  The reported passing rate for the University of Maryland School of Social Work represents the number of Master of Social Work graduates who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first time examinees who graduated that year.

The Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination is administered by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants.  The reported passing rate for the University of Maryland, Baltimore Graduate School represents the number of Physician Assistant graduates who pass the examination on the first try divided by all first time examinations administered to the class graduating that year, including multiple exams taken by individual candidates.