Effect of Emotional Intelligence upon Grade Point Average and Student Satisfaction in a Nontraditional College

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to investigate emotional intelligence and its relationship to academic success, analyzing the relationship of emotional intelligence, academic success, and student satisfaction within a nontraditional college population. Method. This research project surveyed 160 nontraditional students in a Christian college in metro Atlanta. Students completed a 141 question ability test called the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). They also completed the Adult Student Priorities Survey (ASPS) and gave the researcher permission to look at their overall grade point average (GPA) to determine if there was a relationship between emotional intelligence, academic success, and student success among nontraditional students. This was a quantitative correlational study examining the relationship between emotional intelligence and academic success and between emotional intelligence and student satisfaction with a nontraditional college experience. Major Findings. While the results of the study were not rejected the null hypothesis in all five areas studied, the relatively small size of the sample could account for the lack of significance. Given the small sample size, it also is appropriate to examine the magnitude of the correlations using Cohen's criterion of effect sizes