Examining the Relationship Between Graduate Students’ Perception of Academic Rigor, Self-Regulated Learning Strategies and Academic Self-Efficacy

This study examines the relationship between graduate students' perceptions of academic rigor (PAR), self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies, and academic self-efficacy (ASE). The research seeks to understand how these constructs interact to influence graduate students’ academic success who continually face unique challenges such as demanding coursework, independent research, and high expectations. This was based on Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory, which emphasizes the interaction between personal, behavioral, and environmental factors in shaping human behavior. This mixed-methods concurrent convergent design explored the relationships among these constructs. Three existing validated instruments, the General Academic Self-Efficacy (GASE) scale was used to measure ASE, Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ)was used for SRL strategies, and to capture students’ perceptions of academic rigor, the study utilized the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). Additionally, qualitative data from open-ended survey questions provided deeper insights into how students perceive and respond to academic challenges. Graduate students’ perception of academic rigor was shown to have a negative significant influence on their academic self-efficacy. The qualitative findings suggest that students associate academic rigor with extensive reading, synthesis of complex ideas, and high expectations for performance, overwhelming workloads and unclear expectations. The study also uncovered differences between domestic and international graduate students in how they perceive academic rigor and its effects. International students, in particular, found that PAR had a more pronounced impact on their ASE, potentially due to additional cultural and linguistic challenges. For domestic students, however, the relationship between PAR and ASE was less significant, suggesting that different support mechanisms may be required for these groups. Overall, the study concludes that while PAR positively affects ASE, its influence on SRL is complex and may be mediated by other factors like prior experience, intrinsic motivation, and external support. The research contributes to a deeper understanding of the role of academic rigor in shaping graduate students’ learning behaviors and self-efficacy, with implications for how educational institutions can design support systems to enhance student success