Academic performance in first year medical students: an explanatory multivariate model

• Published in: Gaceta médica de México Vol. 150 Suppl 3; pp. 324 - 330
• Main Authors: Urrutia Aguilar, María Esther, Ortiz León, Silvia, Fouilloux Morales, Claudia, Ponce Rosas, Efrén Raúl, Guevara Guzmán, Rosalinda
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Mexico 01-12-2014
• ISSN: 0016-3813

Current education is focused in intellectual, affective, and ethical aspects, thus acknowledging their significance in students´ metacognition. Nowadays, it is known that an adequate and motivating environment together with a positive attitude towards studies is fundamental to induce learning. Medical students are under multiple stressful, academic, personal, and vocational situations.
To identify psychosocial, vocational, and academic variables of 2010-2011 first year medical students at UNAM that may help predict their academic performance.
Academic surveys of psychological and vocational factors were applied; an academic follow-up was carried out to obtain a multivariate model. The data were analyzed considering descriptive, comparative, correlative, and predictive statistics.
The main variables that affect students´ academic performance are related to previous knowledge and to psychological variables.
The results show the significance of implementing institutional programs to support students throughout their college adaptation.