Performance of off-campus engineering students in a Malaysian University: An investigation

It had been observed that degree level off-campus students usually do not perform as well as full time students. Due to the concerns over the off campus Bachelor of Electrical Engineering students´ poor percentage of completion and low percentage of students that achieve Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) above 3.00 at the University of Teknologi MARA (UiTM), a study was initiated to identify the reasons for the poor performance. This paper presents the outcomes of the investigation. The investigation was based on a survey that involved 23 respondents who are lecturers teaching courses/subjects within the programme. The survey was categorized into three parts; the students´ academic performance, their attitude and class behavior and their soft skills. Results indicate that the student´s mathematical skills and knowledge in engineering fundamental basics are very low. In addition, their attitude and class behavior are probably the reason why they cannot score high CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average). However these students seem to posses good soft skills. It is hoped that the findings will help to identify issues related to the off-campus course management so that countermeasures can be implemented to ensure continuous improvement to the programme.