Predictive Validity of Saudi Admission Criteria for Freshmen Students’ English Performance: Experience of King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences

Abstract

This study examines the relationship and correlation between initial admission criteria and English performance of first year students at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences. The performance of 1,595 English language students was compared to the initial academic admission criteria to determine if a correlation exists between academic achievement pre and post admission. Admission criteria include high school grades, General Aptitude Test score (GAT), and Scholastic Achievement Admission Test scores (SAAT). Deep statistical analyses, including independent t tests and multiple linear regression reveal a correlation between pre and post admission performance. For this student population, GAT score was more predictive of English performance than SAAT scores, while the high school grade had no significant relationship to performance on the course. Furthermore, GAT had a higher predictive weight of 7% when compared individually with other admission criteria. However, in a combined model, all of the admission tests cumulatively predicted 17.3% of English performance. Such power is relatively low and requires additional variables to accurately predict a student’s final English score. This study provides unique analyses of performance within the Saudi higher education system and provides insight for those teaching or studying English as a second language. This study is therefore relevant for educators in universities using English for the instruction of non-English, native students and raises questions as to the value of current admission criteria.

The effectiveness of the general aptitude test in Saudi Arabia in predicting performance of English as a foreign language

“…only the total scores) and university GPA of different majors. Similarly, the study confirms Althewini and Alkushi's (2020) study where they examined the GAT's prediction of English performance for Health-majored students. The prediction of the test means the higher a student scores in the test, the higher the score will be in the English language tests and course grades.…”

“…Similarly, Alanazi (2014) found that the GAT score can be a strong predictor for each of its two sections, the numerical and verbal or as a total score, regardless of student's major in high school, and that the GAT score explains 13.2% of variances in first semester's GPA. Althewini and Alkushi (2020) examined the relationship between the GAT's sections' scores and performance of English for students majoring in Health Sciences at a Saudi university. They found that the GAT along with other two academic criteria predicted cumulatively 17.3% of performance in English for this population of students.…”

Investigating Students’ Pre-University Admission Requirements and Their Correlation with Academic Performance for Medical Students: An Educational Data Mining Approach

“…However, SAAT had a significant relationship with GPA in those studies. In one university, an increase in SAAT weightage has already been implemented [ 8 ].…”

“…HSP and SAAT had a significant correlation with early academic performance, while GAT did not. An article [ 8 ] explores the relationship of HSP, SAAT and GAT with English performance for first-year students at King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences. It identified that GAT had higher significance than SAAT in predicting English performance, while HSP had no significance.…”