Research has shown that student engagement is a key driver of student success in higher education. Successful adaptation to university life during the freshmen year, in particular, is deemed critical to student retention and performance. In the Macao Polytechnic Institute (MPI), a public higher education institution in the Macao Special Administrative Region, it is part of the annual quality assurance process that first-year student engagement is measured. The present paper presents an analysis of the results of MPI’s first-year student engagement surveys in the past three years and their correlation with student performance and retention. The analysis indicated that monitoring first-year student engagement is an effective measure for enhancing students’ learning experience. This paper contributes an example of student engagement monitoring in the context of Macao higher education.

Author Profile(s)

• Christy Cheong, Head, Registry, Macao Polytechnic Institute
• Lei Ngan Lin Vivian, PhD, Head, Academic Affairs Department, Macao Polytechnic Institute