What question did this study set out to answer?

The study aims to identify predictors of academic attainment among higher education students in the UK.

October 1, 2003

Another Look at the Role of Age, Gender and Subject as Predictors of Academic Attainment in Higher Education

Key Points

The study aims to identify predictors of academic attainment among higher education students in the UK.
Analyzed data from students awarded first degrees in the UK for the academic year 1995-96.
Examined the relationship between age, gender, and degree classification across different subjects.
Considered teaching and assessment variations in relation to student characteristics.
Students under 21 or aged 26-50 were more likely to earn good degrees, varying by subject.
Women attained good degrees more frequently than men, but this was not consistent across all ages or subjects.
Good degree attainment varied significantly across different subjects.

Abstract

This study investigated predictors of attainment in students awarded first degrees by institutions of higher education in the UK in 1995-96. Those aged under 21 or between 26 and 50 at graduation were more likely to obtain good degrees (with first-class honours or upper second-class honours), but the pattern of age-related variation was different across different subjects of study. Overall, women were more likely to obtain good degrees than men, but this trend did not occur at all ages or in all subjects. There was also a considerable variation in the proportion of good degrees in different subjects. The contingent nature of these phenomena suggests that they result from variations in teaching and assessment practices as well as from characteristics of the students themselves.

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