Predictors of Academic Success in the Undergraduate Psychology Major

Abstract

Transcript data were compiled on 288 recent college graduates majoring in psychology to determine the variables that correlated best with grade point average in psychology (PSYGPA). The graduates were a highly diverse group in terms of high school academic backgrounds, grades in high school, and Scholastic Aptitude Test scores. Factor analysis of 26 predictor variables revealed three clusters of variables: high school grades/verbal, general studies, and mathematics. Multiple regression analyses revealed PSYGPA to be predicted by the grade in Introductory Psychology, general studies coursework, and mathematics factors, which together accounted for 67% of the variance. The prediction equation differed somewhat from that obtained for students at another university; consequently, prediction equations used to screen majors should be based only on students at a particular institution.