Investigating the relationship between problem solving skills and academic achievement of students of Birjand University of Medical Sciences in 2017

Background and Aim: Academic achievement is one of the important indicators in the evaluation of higher education system. in this regard, problem-solving skills are among factors influencing students’ academic achievement. the purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between problem-solving skills and academic achievement of students at Birjand University of Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: This study is a descriptive-analytic, correlational study in which 342 students studying at Birjand University of Medical Sciences were selected via a stratified random sampling method in the academic year of 2016-17. the data collection tools comprised of a demographics form, Hepner & Petroson Standardized Problem Solving Questionnaire, and students’ total GPA scores as indicators of academic achievement. Data analysis was performed by SPSS18 using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage), Pearson correlation test, independent t-test, and, analysis of variance. Results: The majority of participants in this study (58.5%) were girls. Based on Pearson correlation test, there was a significant positive correlation between problem-solving and academic achievement. There was also a statistically significant difference between the students' GPA scores in terms of gender and student's faculty (P