Non-Academic Predictors of Academic Performance Throughout a Physical Therapist Education Program

Holistic admissions examine a broad range of academic and non-academic applicant factors to determine how an individual will contribute to the learning environment and their potential for success. Prior academic performance is an established indicator of future performance, but less is known about non-academic metrics such as sociodemographic factors and personal attributes, some of which could be considered in holistic admissions practices. This study explored how personal and sociodemographic attributes (age, sex, diversity characteristics) impact academic performance throughout a physical therapist (PT) education program.

Three cohorts of first-year Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students at a single institution were invited to participate.

In this prospective, observational cohort study, first-year DPT students completed 6 surveys: PROMIS® General Self-efficacy, PROMIS® Anxiety, 12-item Grit Scale, Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), and PROMIS® Positive Affect. Investigators used a 3-step hierarchical regression to determine if these personal attributes, along with age, sex, and diversity characteristics, were predictors of first-semester grade point average (GPA), program GPA, and Practice Exam and Assessment Tool (PEAT) scores.

145 students participated (80.7% female, 51% zero diversity characteristics). Age and diversity characteristics were negative predictors in models for first-semester and program GPA (R2=0.22, p<0.001; R2=0.22, p<0.01, respectively). Personal attributes did not contribute additional variance to GPA nor PEAT scores.

Of the variables studied, age and diversity characteristics can be useful for predicting GPA, but not PEAT scores. Older and more diverse DPT students have poorer academic outcomes in the didactic phase of their education. Personal attributes can be incorporated into holistic admissions; however, they may not be useful as indicators of academic performance.