Exploring academic readiness and motivation among pre-diploma commerce students in UiTM Cawangan Pulau Pinang: a survey study

The progression from secondary education to tertiary studies represents a transformative period frequently characterized by significant academic and personal obstacles. This study explores the level of academic readiness and learning motivation among pre-diploma commerce students at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Pulau Pinang. Utilizing survey design, data was collected from 69 students during the October 2025 to February 2026 semester using a structured questionnaire adapted from the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS). The instrument demonstrated high reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.836 for academic readiness and 0.898 for learning motivation. The findings indicate that students generally possess high levels of academic readiness and an overwhelmingly strong motivation to succeed, with over 95% agreement across all motivation items. However, independent study skills were identified as a key area for improvement, with 31.8% of students lacking confidence in autonomous learning. The study concludes that a significant positive relationship exists between readiness and motivation. These insights suggest that institutions should prioritize structured academic support to bridge experiential gaps, particularly for first-generation students.