Project description:Rationale: Learning styles (LS) of medical residents change over time from the more passive Assimilator toward more active preferences like Accommodator or Converger. We have shown pharmacy residents to be predominantly Assimilators at the start of their residency program. Whether learning styles of pharmacy residents change after they enter practice has never been studied. Objective: To describe the evolution of learning styles of pharmacy residents as they transition from residency into practice. Study Design and Methods: Prospective observational survey and semi-structured interviews. A complete provincial cohort of former pharmacy residents (n=28) who had their LS characterized during their residency and were now 1 year post-residency were invited to repeat the Pharmacists’ Inventory of Learning Styles (PILS). Interviews were administered to consenting participants to gain additional insights. Results: 27 residents (96%) completed the PILS survey and 16 (59%) completed the interview. 13 (48%) changed their dominant LS and 20 (74%) changed their secondary LS. Six (22%) participants did not change either LS. The overall proportion of dominant Assimilators (59%) and Convergers (26%) remained similar to baseline (52% and 26%, respectively), meaning participants had adopted and abandoned different learning styles in similar numbers. Change in LS was associated with receiving preceptor training (p<0.05). Of the 12 preceptors interviewed, 58% stated that they had adjusted their teaching practices based on knowledge of their LS. Conclusions: Change in dominant and/or secondary learning style is common after 1 year in practice compared to during pharmacy practice residency. There is no overall direction to the shifts, however, with residents transitioning in and out of more active learning styles with similar frequency. Overall after a year in practice, the cohort of former residents we studied remained mostly Assimilators, who prefer passive learning approaches. These results contrast with medical students, who adopt more active preferences like Accommodator.