Dropouts

A dropout is a student who enrolls in a program of post-compulsory education for which they are academically suitable, but who then withdraws before completion of the course or gaining qualifications. It is therefore possible to distinguish a dropout as a person who deliberately withdraws from a course of study from one who has failed to achieve because of making inadequate academic progress: a push-out. Dropouts can be further subdivided into total or partial withdrawals. Total withdrawal is when a student completely withdraws from the institution. Partial withdrawal is characterized by students not attending some parts of their study program. Although dropout numbers are now widely collected all over the world, the reasons for students withdrawing are still an under-researched area. Statistically, noncompletion rates remain ...