Correlates of Engineering Freshman Academic Performance

This paper reports empirical research which tested the validity of a theoretical model of the correlates of engineering freshman academic performance in an Irish context. The research examined the hypothesis that academic performance is related to both students' previous educational experience (input) and to their application to study (process) during the freshman year. The model explains 49% of the variance in such performance. It indicates that both input and process variables contribute to the explanation of differences in engineering freshman academic performance. The implications of these findings are discussed.