Effectiveness of UK and international A-level assessment in predicting performance in engineering

Abstract

In many universities, admissions decisions are made based upon the advanced-level (A-Level) results. The purpose of this study was to assess the value of A-level and international equivalents as a predictor of early achievement in higher education. About 135 UK and 92 international undergraduate engineering students from 35 countries were assessed at different stages of their instruction. The results show that the key predictor for academic performance is whether or not the students received a British education. The implications are that more policies and awareness are needed in order to effectively support international students in engineering during their transitional process.

Keywords:

• A-levels
• engineering
• predicting academic performance
• international students