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Pacific students undertaking the first year of health sciences at the University of Otago, and factors associated with academic performance.

AIM
To describe Pacific students in the first year of health sciences at tertiary level, their academic performance, and factors associated with academic outcomes.


METHOD
Routinely collected data for students who enrolled in the Health Sciences First Year (HSFY) programme at the University of Otago between 2007 and 2011, including their school National Certificate in Educational Achievement (NCEA) results were obtained in anonymous form. Descriptive statistics were calculated and regression analyses were undertaken using SAS v9.2 software.


RESULTS
A small but increasing number of Pacific students are enrolling in health sciences at tertiary level. Pacific students had poorer performance compared to non-Pacific students in both NCEA and the HSFY programme. Factors associated with academic performance were gender, NCEA results, school decile, accommodation type, ethnicity, international status and disability.


CONCLUSION
Pacific students are under-represented in health sciences and would benefit from better preparation from school. Pacific solutions are required to improve academic outcomes over and above mainstream policy solutions. Tertiary institutions need to engage prospective students earlier to ensure they are well informed of requirements, and are appropriately prepared for study at the tertiary level.