Relationship between entry qualifications and performance in graduate education

It is generally accepted that the undergraduate cumulative point average (UCPA) is associated with graduate performance of the same discipline. Less known, however, is how good the UCPA at predicting graduate performance in a different discipline. This paper discusses a study on the relationship between UCPA, undergraduate program of study, and graduate performance – operationalised as graduate CPA (GCPA) – in a Master in Technical and Vocational Education program (MTVE). Data were gathered on UCPA, their undergraduate program of study, gender and previous university of 612 MTVE students using their application forms and academic records. The large number of programs of study was reduced to five groups of disciplines namely, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Business and Management, and Others. Descriptive statistics and linear regression were used to analyse the data. The results showed that both undergraduate program of study and UCPA are predictors of GCPA and the extent to which UCPA contributes towards GCPA varies across programs of study.