Ranking Sri Lankan Universities Based on Study Program Cut-offs

Abstract

Since 2015, the University Grants Commission has been releasing separate district-wise cut-off Zscores for various universities across different study programs. This allows for a comparison of universities based on student preferences for each program. However, there hasn't been much statistical study conducted on these cut-off Z-scores. The primary aim of this research is to statistically analyze the cut-off Z-scores for the engineering and medical faculties and rank those faculties based on the preferences of G.C.E. (A/L) students. The sample comprises cut-off Z-scores from 2015 to 2021. The average cut-off Z-scores across the 25 districts are calculated for these two study programs. For this analysis, the one-way analysis of variance and linear regression analysis techniques have been employed. The study's results indicate significant differences among universities for both study programs. Further analysis using the Least Significant Difference test has been utilized to rank the universities for both study programs. The University of Colombo is ranked as the most demanding university for medicine, while the University of Moratuwa is ranked as the most demanding university for the engineering program. It appears that students generally prefer universities located closer to the capital city, Colombo. Moreover, the study reveals a significant positive correlation between the cut-off Z-scores and the years for the medicine study program. This suggests that the competition for admission to medicine has intensified over the years.