First-year academic achievement: the role of academic self-efficacy, self-regulated learning and beyond classroom engagement

Abstract

A successful first year is of vital importance to academic achievement in higher education. How can we identify those students at risk at a very early stage, i.e. even before they have entered university? This study focuses on three pre-university factors, namely academic self-efficacy, self-regulated learning, in terms of autonomous motivation and time-management, and beyond classroom engagement. 2355 Dutch prospective first-year students in the fields of science, humanities and social sciences filled in our survey. Data on first year academic achievement in terms of grade point average (GPA) was obtained at the end of the first year. Prospective first-year students scored high on all of the variables; we found gender-related differences, favouring female students, as well as discipline-related differences. Time management and autonomous motivation were found to be positive predictors of achievement; beyond classroom engagement was a negative predictor of achievement. This paper contributes to the research on first-year academic achievement and emphasises the importance of providing students with personalised trajectories from the moment they enter university.

Keywords:

• Prospective university students
• academic self-efficacy
• autonomous motivation
• time-management
• beyond classroom-engagement

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Marjon Fokkens-Bruinsma

Marjon Fokkens-Bruinsma is an assistant professor at the department of Teacher Education, research division Higher Education, faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, University of Groningen.

Carlien Vermue

Carlien Vermue is a researcher at the division of Educational Support and Innovation, Center for Information Technology, University of Groningen.

Jan-Folkert Deinum

Jan Folkert Deinum is a senior educational advisor and researcher at the division of Educational Support and Innovation, Center for Information Technology, University of Groningen.

Els van Rooij

Els van Rooij was a postdoctoral researcher at the department of Teacher Education, research division Higher Education, faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, University of Groningen. She now works as a policy advisor at the Eindhoven Technical University.