Academic engagement, academic self-efficacy and instructor support in higher education: impacts on postgraduate career intention

OpenAlex English

Abstract Although postgraduate education has received increasing attention, little research has examined the cognitive and contextual factors shaping undergraduates’ intentions to pursue a postgraduate career. Guided by social cognitive career theory, this study examined the mediating role of academic engagement in the relationship between academic self-efficacy and postgraduate career intention and the moderating role of perceived instructor support. Participants were 302 undergraduate students from a university in Türkiye. Findings showed that academic self-efficacy had a direct effect on postgraduate career intention. Academic engagement significantly mediated this relationship. Moderated mediation analyses revealed that perceived instructor support strengthened both the direct and indirect effects, with the indirect path through academic engagement being more pronounced at higher levels of instructor support.