FIRST-YEAR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS' UNMET UNIVERSITY EXPECTATIONS AND EXPERIENCE COULD INFLUENCE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: A SOUTH AFRICAN UNIVERSITY CASE STUDY

This study investigated the gap between first year students' prior university expectations with their actual university experience, at one institution in the Western Cape. The focus of this study was twofold: firstly, to identify the intensity of the gap between incoming students' university expectations with their actual experience; and secondly, to investigate if the first-year students' unmet university expectations have an influence on their academic performance. Quantitative data was collected in two phases, the first phase collected information from a Pre-Entry Expectation survey conducted with first-year students' prior to the start of the academic year. The second phase of data was collection from a First-Year Experience survey administered towards the end of the academic year. A total of 187 first-year students that completed both surveys were the participants in the study. Paired T-test and regression analysis was used to analyse the gap between the students' university expectation and experience. Tinto's student integration model together with Lizzio's five sense of success model guided the research process. The finding from this study reveal that first-year students entering university have unrealistic expectations with regard to the following four dimensions investigated: students' resourcefulness, purposefulness, connectedness and capabilities. The study found that the students' university expectation scores were higher than their actual university experience scores. In addition, the findings reveal that there was a positive correlation between students' capabilities scores and their academic performance. Finally, the study posits that addressing first year students university expectations as early as possible could positively influence academic performance and retention.