Determinants of Students' Performance in Private Higher Education Institutions in Ethiopia

Abstract

The performance of students in Private Higher Education Institutions (PHEIs) can be affected by a wide variety of factors. These factors include social, economic, academic and institutional aspects directly or indirectly influencing the teaching learning process. One or more of these factors or in combination can contribute to increment or decrement in academic performance of students. The general objective of the study is to find out the academic, social, and institutional variables which can predict the difference between PHEI students with increasing academic performance and those with decreasing academic performance. The study will also assess gender differences affecting academic performance of students in private institutions of higher learning in Ethiopia. The study population consists of the list of accredited private higher learning institutions in Addis Ababa. Sample size of the study was 200 students selected randomly from five accredited PHEIs located in Addis Ababa. Primary data were collected using pre-tested questionnaire. Binary logistic regression model was used to predict the determinants of students' increased and decreased academic performance. The same model was fit to identify the factors affecting the academic performances of male and female students. The findings indicated that learning motivation, class participation, starting time of study in semester and living condition of students have statistically significant effect in predicting students' academic performance.