Modeling Impact of Soft Skills on Academic Performance Among University Undergraduates In Ogun State, Nigeria

Behaviours embedded in soft skills are parts of the factors that contribute to students' academic performance. Educational productivity theory underpins the study. The study modeled the contribution of soft skills to academic performance of university undergraduates in Ogun State. A nonexperimental research design was implied. Six lecturers were engaged in a discussion to determine the soft skills and the indicators that students were expected to possess to excel academically. University Undergraduate Soft Skills Self-Assessment Scale (UUSSSAS) was used to collect data from 603 (males=360, females=243) undergraduates in public and private Universities in Ogun State. Structural Equation Model (SEM) was employed using Smart PLS 4.0 and IBM SPSS 23 to factor analyse, determine the measurement, structural models of the scale and the contribution of soft skills to students' academic performance. Five major themes clusters emerged from the analysis: communication skills, time management, teamwork, selfdiscipline and social capital. UUSSSAS was utilized and the five soft skills contributed a total of 13.4% to students' academic performance. Results have implications on the students' behaviour to skills that aid reading habit and theory of educational productivity. Findings corroborate educational productivity theory and guide both students and institutions in working to improve the students' academic performance.