Admission criteria and subsequent academic performance of general nursing diploma students.

OBJECTIVE To determine the relationship between admission criteria used to select students and their subsequent academic performance in general nursing diploma Programmeme in the province of Sindh METHODS Using a descriptive co-relational study design, data was collected retrospectively from records of the entire nursing student population of the batch of 2004. Using multiple linear regression analysis method, three regression models were developed to identify the group of variables that could predict academic performance of the students in the three-year general nursing diploma programme. RESULTS Results identified a significant relationship between admission criteria and subsequent academic performance of the students in the general nursing diploma programme. Specific factors which were found significant included entry qualification, previous academic performance and gender. CONCLUSION The study concluded that academic factors considered in the admission criteria were better predictors of students' academic performance than the non academic factors. These factors should be considered in the admission criteria for general nursing diploma programme.