In this research note, Emma Whitelaw and Nicola Branson from the University of Cape Town (UCT), examine the association between National Senior Certificate (NSC) performance and National Benchmark Test (NBT) scores among applicants to UCT. They find that during COVID-19 disrupted years, applicants’ admission point scores, derived from NSC grades, rose relative to NBT scores which remained similar since the onset of COVID-19.
The paper is instructive in showing that NBTs not only provide a useful source of information for tracking the preparedness of new students into universities but for tracking the consistency of the matric (NSC) examination over time.
