Background: The primary place for teaching, especially difficult scientific subjects is the classroom. Nowadays, many students do not want to attend classes. This study aimed to investigate the factors affecting student attendance in the classroom from the perspective of medical sciences students of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (MUMS).
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on medical students of MUMS (nursing and midwifery, pharmacy, and health sciences students) who participated in a two-day entrepreneurship workshop using the available sampling method. Data were collected using a standard questionnaire containing demographic questions, and 26 items on factors affecting student attendance in classrooms on a five-point Likert scale were used. The questionnaire was self-administered by the students. The data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16.0.
Results: In the study, 101 students of three faculties of MUMS, including nursing and midwifery (39.6%), health sciences (36.6%), and pharmacy (23.8%), participated. The most important factor affecting the attendance of students in the classroom was factors related to professors (3.93+0.61), factors related to the evaluation system (3.87+0.63), and student-related factors (3.86+0.56). The lowest average score was related to the physical conditions of the classroom (3.59+0.77).
Conclusion: The attendance of students in classrooms is affected by factors related to the professor, students, and the evaluation system.