Personality predicts academic achievement in higher education: Differences by academic field of study?

In the present study it is investigated whether students enrolled in different academic fields of study have differing personality traits (i.e., conscientiousness and openness) and whether the relationship between these traits and academic achievement differs by academic field. Using Structural Equation Modeling on data from a large sample of university students, this study examined to what extent students' levels of conscientiousness and openness differ by academic field and whether these personality traits have differential predictive value for academic achievement for students in different academic fields. We found that students who are more open to experience and less conscientious are more likely to enroll in a program in the academic field of arts/humanities than in another field. There were no differences in the predictive value of these personality traits for academic achievement by academic field when controlling for prior performance in high school. These findings emphasize the general effectiveness of conscientiousness in explaining academic achievement and also call for the consideration of academic fields or college majors in personality research. Besides having theoretical implications, these findings have practical implications for higher education.