Engineering positioning test in Flanders : a powerful predictor for study success ?

A new positioning test for the Bachelor of Engineering Science was broadly and uniformly implemented in Flanders in the summer of 2013 [1]. The non-mandatory test measures the ability of future engineering students to solve engineering problems and compares a student’s mathematical skills with the required prior knowledge. This paper is the first one to analyse the predictive power of the positioning test. Specifically, this paper studies the impact of the positioning test on the enrolment and the impact on the study trajectory of the studies (trial exams and January results) at the KU Leuven Bachelor in Engineering Science and the Bachelor in Engineering Science Architecture.