The Relevance, Reliability, and Validity of the National Graduate Admission Test (N- GAT) as an Admission Tool into Graduate Programs in Ethiopia

Abstract

Addis Ababa University introduced the Graduate Admission Test (GAT) for the first time in 2020 as a
screening aptitude test for candidates interested in applying for their postgraduate studies. Later, this
was scaled up as a national GAT by the Ministry of Education in October 2023 and became a
mandatory screening test for all applicants to graduate programs in all public and private
universities. The need for the GAT arose due to concerns over the quality of graduate programs
offered by various universities in Ethiopia. The objectives of the study were 1) to explore the reliability
and validity of the GAT; 2) to analyze the factors associated with the test, and 3) to suggest future
actions that could improve the quality of the test. Data were collected from the archives of the entire
test takers who sat for the national GAT in October 2023. The entire cohort of test takers, totaling
34,520 candidates, had filled in their background information and their undergraduate GPAs, which
were linked to their scores on the national GAT. Descriptive statistics, non-parametric tests (such as
chi-square tests), and inferential statistics (such as t-test and analysis of variance) were used to
answer the research questions. Findings of this study showed that most candidates (about 82.4%)
came from four regions; that is, from Oromia (28.5%), Addis Ababa (26.2%), Amhara (17.5%), and
SNNPR (10.2%), while only about 17.6% came from the other regional states. Besides, there were
significantly higher numbers of male (74.7%) than female (25.3%) test takers in all locations who sat
for the GAT administration in October 2023. Scores on GAT were positively associated with
candidates’ socioeconomic background, where those who had internet access in their homes, for
instance, and those who had better undergraduate CGPA scored higher on the GAT. Furthermore, the
interaction of gender and undergraduate CPA was also explored using linear regression analysis, and
it was found that female candidates who had higher undergraduate CGPA were more likely to score
higher on GAT as compared to their male counterparts. Furthermore, as a screening tool, the GAT
was found to be highly reliable, with moderate predictive validity for candidates who joined the MSc
and MA programs, but not for those who joined the PhD programs. Results were discussed and
recommendations forwarded.