The Relationship Between A Growth Mindset And Resilience Among Private University Students Who Failed To Gain Admission To Public Universities In Medan

Failure to gain admission to a public university (PTN) often causes psychological stress among high school graduates in Medan, such as disappointment, low self-esteem, and a decline in motivation. Resilience is a crucial ability for adapting and bouncing back, while a growth mindset, the belief that abilities can be developed through effort is believed to play a role in fostering that resilience. This study aims to examine the relationship between a growth mindset and resilience among private university (PTS) students in Medan who failed to gain admission to a PTN. Theoretically, the results are expected to enrich the literature in Educational Psychology and Positive Psychology; practically, they can serve as a reference for psychoeducational programs designed to strengthen students’ growth mindset and resilience. The study’s limitations include a subject population restricted to active 2025-cohort students at private universities in Medan who had previously failed to gain admission to public universities, the use of purposive sampling, a cross-sectional correlational design, and the measurement of only two variables via self-report scales. The method used was a quantitative correlational approach employing Pearson’s product-moment correlation on 361 respondents. The instruments consisted of the Growth Mindset Scale (18 items, α = 0.918) and the Resilience Scale (32 items, α = 0.951). The results showed a strong, significant positive correlation (r = 0.788; p < 0.05), with a growth mindset accounting for 62% of the variance in resilience. The majority of respondents fell into the high category for both variables. The conclusion confirms that the higher the growth mindset, the higher the students’ resilience. The novelty of this study lies in its specific focus on a population of private university students in Medan who are experiencing a transition due to failing to gain admission to a public university, a group that is rarely studied in an integrated manner within this context