Predictive Validity of Ume Scores to Students’ Academic Achievement in Federal University of Technology, Yola

Abstract

Abstract: Much noise has been in the air concerning the credibility of University Matriculation Examination (UME) scores for admission into Nigerian Tertiary Institutions. In this paper therefore, the researcher’s purpose was to find the Predictive Validity of University Matriculation Examination (UME) scores to students’ academic achievement in Federal University of Technology, Yola. The estimated population of the study was two thousand, five hundred (2500) 100-level students from which a sample of four hundred and Sixty-eight (468) was drawn, using stratified and purposive random sampling. The study employed correlation research design and used adapted existing pro-forma for data collection. The instrument was rated at 83 percent with 0.83 rational validity index. The findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between UME scores and First Year Grade Point Average (FGPA) thereby presenting UME as a strong predictor of students’ academic achievement in FUTYola. The researcher therefore recommended among others that JAMB should improve on the integrity of its examinations, making the process acceptable to tertiary institutions.