BACKGROUND:

Emotional Intelligence (EI) in students is related with physical and psychological well-being, personal satisfaction, and better academic performance.

Aim:

To assess EI in students from eight health careers at the beginning and end of a year of university experience.

MATERIAL AND METHODS:

Sociodemographic and EI questionnaires were answered by 364 first-year students (74% women) at the beginning and end of the academic year. The EI questionnaire comprised attention, understanding and regulation of emotions subscales.

RESULTS:

The mean EI score increased at the end of the academic year from 79.5 to 81.2 (p < 0.01). A similar trend was observed in the subscales of emotional attention and emotional clarity. No significant differences between sexes were observed. First-year medical students had higher scores on all subscales, both at the beginning and end of the academic year. In all students, the subscale with the highest score was emotional repair.

CONCLUSIONS:

Tools to diagnose students' strengths and weaknesses are relevant for higher education institutions. These tools facilitate the implementation of educational and personal improvement strategies.