263 Bulgarian Journal of Science and Education Policy (BJSEP), Volume 13, Number 2, 2019 EMOTIONAL ABILITIES OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EI) AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: EXAMINING THEIR RELATIONSHIP USING NIGERIA UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE CHEMISTRY STUDENTS Emmanuel Nkemakolam OKWUDUBA, Okigbo Ebele CHINELO, Samuel Nkiru NAOMI Nnamdi Azikiwe University, NIGERIA . Abstract. The relationship between emotional intelligence and aca- demic performance is well established but less is known about how six emo- tional abilities predict academic performance. Using a sample of 164 undergrad- uate students, the researchers examined the relationships among the six emo- tional abilities of emotional intelligence and their academic performance in chemistry. The participants responded to Schutte emotional intelligence scale and provided informed consent for their total score in basic chemistry course to be paired with their responses (academic performance). Analyses tested the col- lective influence of six emotional abilities, gender, age and total emotional in- telligence on academic performance. The examination revealed that except for, gender age and ERS (r =.053 - .117), all emotional abilities of emotional intel- ligence and total emotional intelligence positively and significantly correlated with academic performance of students in chemistry (r = .321 - .537). Gender differences exist between the six emotional abilities and academic performance