This study examined test alignment of entry qualifications as predictors of final grades of students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Four research questions and hypotheses were formulated for the study and tested at .05 alpha level using regression statistical technique. The entry qualifications and final grades of 2,504 final year students were randomly sampled from 12 tertiary institutions in Nigeria and used as the data for the study. The findings of the study showed that the entry qualifications (WASSCE, NECO, NBTCE and UTME) are not effectively aligned with the courses of students in tertiary institutions to ensure good final grades. It was concluded that alignment should be adopted and implemented effectively since test alignment of entry qualifications with courses of students in tertiary institutions is very important as it can be used to ensure and predict good final grades of students. It was recommended among others that what students learn in secondary schools should be built upon in tertiary institutions rather than learning starting from a totally different point that is abstract to the students because students’ interest and enthusiasm would be developed and maintained leading to effective learning and better academic achievements.
Keywords: entry qualifications, final grades, predictive validity, test alignment
