Did the four-year extended programme make a difference towards the success rate of the engineering faculty?

Abstract The four-year extended programme was offered from 2016 to 2018 at the Vaal University of Technology and statistically never been proved to be successful. Oral feedback from the faculty always portrait the programme to be successful, as students moved fluently through their years of study. The purpose of the extended programme was to improve the academic performance of students who are at risk due to their educational backgrounds. The key role of the extended qualification is therefore, to support educationally disadvantaged students who are underprepared despite meeting minimum admission criteria, by enabling them to be placed on an extended curriculum that will give them the academic foundations for successfully completing their studies. The purpose of this paper will be to statistically prove that the students who received the extended curriculum, based on the specific model followed, will perform well and they made a positive difference towards the success rate of the engineering faculty.