Explanatory Factors of Academic Failure at the Higher Institute of Medical Techniques of Kinshasa: Analysis of Logistic Regression

Objective: The general objective of this research is to identify the factors associated with academic failure among students of the Higher Institute of Medical Techniques of Kinshasa (ISTM-KIN). Methods: The transversal explanatory method was used in this research, with an interview questionnaire with students enrolled in second graduates and second licenses at ISTM-KIN. Data were entered and analyzed using Stata software. Results: For this study, we obtained the following results: single students were more common (69.50%), most (49.30%) of the students had fathers with a university education level, 46.80% of students experienced academic failure, 55.00% of students showed stress during exams, 53.90 of them did not visit the library regularly, 37.90% of students had difficulty paying fees studies, 46.60% of parents did not have sufficient means to support their children’s studies. The following explanatory factors were identified: older students OR: 1.09 (1.05 - 1.15), paying tuition fees late OR: 1.61 (1.04 - 2.50), living far from the OR campus: 1.60 (1.00 - 2.56), often arriving late for classes OR: 1.72 (1.04 - 2.84), and finally, not practicing regularly reading notes before and during exams OR: 2.09 (1.31 - 3.37). Conclusion: The following explanatory factors for academic failure were revealed: older students, late payment of study fees, living far from campus, regularly arriving late for classes, and neglect of reading regular course notes before and during exams. The construction of homes for students, the improvement of the socio-cultural and economic conditions of parents, the promotion of regular reading before and during evaluations prove essential for resolving the situation of academic failure at ISTM-KIN.