Exploratory Factor Analysis of the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire Short Version in a Sample of Chilean University Students

Abstract

Background: The problem of studies abandonment greatly affects university students at different levels of training. The permanence in a university career depends on the adaptation skills of the students to the new educational context, which is why, its measurement is relevant for the identification and accompaniment of at-risk students. The objective of this work was to evaluate the internal structure of the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire [SACQ] short version in a sample of Chilean university students. Method: A total of 249 first-year students from a southern Chilean university participated. The average age of the participants was 19.11 years [SD = 5.29]. The SACQ short version was used with 47 items distributed in four dimensions: academic, social, emotional and institutional adjustments. Results: After a new organization of the items by means of an exploratory factor analysis a four-factor structure was obtained. Adequate correlations were identified between the items and the dimensions of the questionnaire. Conclusions: The new version of the SACQ is a measure with adequate internal validity to measure the adaptation of the university students in the context of Higher Education in Chile, however, it is recommended to make a confirmatory factor analysis prior to its use.