eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Nursing Research 2378-5586 2018-10-08 6 6 418 429 10.12691/ajnr-6-6-9 AJNR2018669 article Naglaa Kamel Abduallah Hussein nogakamel55@yahoo.com 1 Marwa Mohamed Ahmed Ouda 2 Community Health Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, Damanhour University, Damanhour, Egypt Pediatric Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, Damanhour University, Damanhour, Egypt Background: Adolescence is a period of considerable physical and mental changes, of which transition to higher levels of study and planning for a future career is significant. Academic achievements assume importance and is a key factor for personal progress and personal worth and it considered a benchmark of a child's intelligence. In today's competitive society, Academic underachievement is a major concern among parents and teachers, and it assumes significance as it is a key factor for personal and professional growth. Aim of study: Is to identify risk factors of academic underachievement among preparatory school students in El-Behira Governorate. Design: Descriptive design. Setting: The study was conducted in ten (10) governmental preparatory schools in five (5) educational directorates of the eighteen (18) educational directorates in El-Beheira Governorate Subjects: using systematic random sample technique to select the required sample size of 400 students (200 achievers and 200 underachievers) which were halved by sex. Tools: data was collected using two tools for Students assessment, Family Socioeconomic Status Scale (SES) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results: according to the liner regression model for the predictors of academic achievement among the studied students the following variables show a significant effect, Students' age, Socioeconomic score, Students' labor , Finishing daily homework, Private tutoring, Years of previous grade repetition and total strengths and difficulties score. Conclusion and recommendations: Several personal risk factors were highlighted at the present study to have significant association with students' underachievement so it is recommended to Developing evidence based guidelines for underachievement based on the underlying causes and awareness of the community about adolescents' underachievement in schools. http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajnr/6/6/9/ajnr-6-6-9.pdf adolescence risk factors life style school performance academic underachievement academic achievement