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Correlation between extracurricular activities and academic performances among preclinical medical students in Udayana University, Bali, Indonesia

Background: Medical students are required to develop the ability and clinical skill to carry out the profession. Soft skill is also important to enhance the students’ performance when facing a real-life situation in the community. It can be developed through an extracurricular activity which trains positive behavior, time management, and social aspect. This study was aimed to explore the correlation between extracurricular activities and academic performances among medical students in the preclinical phase. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 221 medical students of Udayana University in the preclinical phase. Data were taken from data collecting by the Student Executive Board for Credit Point of Participation, which was the indicator of extracurricular activities and grouped into active and not active. Data were also taken from the Academic Affair’s registered data (Grade Point Average (GPA) and gender). GPA was the indicator of academic performance and grouped into good and average. Data were analyzed using univariate and bivariate analysis (Chi-Square Test with Cramer’s V) on SPSS version 20 for Windows. Results: From 221 medical students (males 43.9%; females 56.1%), 48% are active participants of extracurricular programs. Fifty-nine medical students had a good GPA and 162 medical students had an average GPA. The mean score of Credit Point of Participation are 116.545±65.79 and GPA is 3.3781±0.282 (out of possible 4). Our study showed a positive correlation between extracurricular activities and academic performance (r=0.2; p=0.003). Conclusions: Medical students who are active participants in extracurricular programs have better academic performance than those who are passive. Extracurricular activities lead to a positive impact on academic achievement because it can decrease any academic stress and tension, which lead to more productivity in their learning.