title: Factors associated with academic performance of physical therapy students.
abstract: Understanding the pre-matriculation factors that influence academic success facilitates the recruitment and retention of students who are more likely to graduate on time.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the factors associated with the academic performance of students enrolled in the physical therapy diploma programme.
  
  
  METHODS
  Records of 250 students enrolled over a twenty-year period at the School of Physical Therapy were reviewed. Data were collected and organized using a data collection sheet. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Relationships between the independent variables: age, gender marital status, work history and entry qualifications, and the dependent variables: academic performance (percentage of subjects passed at the first sitting of examinations and success in the Final Qualifying Examination), withdrawal and delayed graduation were examined using correlation coefficient, t-test, ANOVA and chi-square as appropriate.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results revealed that students gaining the minimum entry qualifications at one sitting of GCE O' Level/CXC examinations (p < 0.01) and who had GCE A' Level passes (p < 0.05) were less likely to withdraw from the programme. Students without prior work experience performed better during the course of study (p < 0.05) but the older and married students were more likely to withdraw (p < 0.01). Older students performed better on the Final Qualifying Practical and Theory Examinations taken at the end of the academic programme (p < 0.05) but had a lower percentage of subjects passed at the first sitting of course examinations (p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Students with better academic preparation demonstrated better academic performance. These findings were consistent with prior studies in the field.
authors.affiliation: School of Physical Therapy, Department of Basic Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies.
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Gordon
authors.forename: S K P
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Hudson
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stewart
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D026761:Physical Therapy Specialty / Q000193:education*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013336:Students, Health Occupations / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult