The Relationship between Big Five Personality Traits and Academic Performance of AJA University of Medical Sciences Students

Introduction: Academic failure of students is one of the major problems of higher education centers in the country, which causes a waste of time and running costs of these centers and it creates psychological, family and social issues and problems for students. In addition, people with a drop in education will not be efficient human resources in the future. The present study was conducted in order to investigate the relationship between five major personality trait groups with academic performance and also the predictability of academic progress through these traits. Methods and Materials: This correlational study was performed in AJA University of Medical Sciences. The studied population consisted of all students studying in the second semester of the year 2022. 287 students were selected as the research sample using Cochran’s formula and available sampling method. Moreover, they answered Costa and McCree’s NEO-FFI questionnaire (short form). The GPA of the previous academic semester was used to measure educational performance. Data were analyzed through regression (enter method) using SPSS software version 26. Results: The results of the regression (enter method) indicated that the two variables of neuroticism and conscientiousness can be relatively good predictors for academic performance. Discussion and Conclusion: Since personality traits play an undeniable role in various dimensions of life especially academic performance, besides various measurements, the measurement of psychological and personality dimensions of students should be included in the selection of candidates to enter AJA University of Medical Sciences.