Abstract
In Colombia, the gaps of regional inequalities and social opportunities permeate people’s economic, political, and social participation. Additionally, the initial endowments of individual and socioeconomic background, barriers to financial aid, and academic and personal skills restrict decision-making about studying. In this context, the main objective is to analyze the determinants of dropout rates in Colombia and the differences between the type of institutions, field of study, and regions. We used data from three public administrative agencies for the period 2000–2012. The methodology combines multiple correspondence analysis and a lineal hierarchical model to explain the effect of variables operating at different levels. As a result, we retained four dimensions to represent the individuals’ socioeconomic and financial conditions. The findings obtained from the multilevel model suggest the variation between institutions (11%) and the interaction between institutions and the program cycle (17.8%). It confirms the influence of inequities on desertion. The student chooses between programs with differences in fees and study costs in general, such as quality, social recognition, and employment. In sum, contextual and institutional disparities in the dropout phenomenon’s behavior are explained mainly by the supply conditions in these regions and the individuals’ socioeconomic backgrounds.
Highlights
Considering the elements identified in the literature review about socioeconomic background, individual and/or personal characteristics, and aid programs, we propose our first research hypothesis
Higher education is given in higher education institutions (HEIs), which can be public or private, depending on whether they are recipients of fiscal resources assigned by the government or if their primary financial resources are obtained from the tuition paid by students
Following the criteria explained in the previous section, the multiple correspondence analysis implemented allows us to retain four dimensions that explain about 75% of the inertia
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. In Colombia, the gaps of regional inequalities and inequality of social opportunities permeate people’s economic, political, and social participation. Colombia is divided politically and administratively into thirty-three regions. In 2019, three areas had half of the economic growth of the country, and six areas represented two-thirds of the same [1]. In the same year, according to PNUD [2], in the urban areas, the incidence of multidimensional poverty was 12.3% of the population, while in the rural areas, it was 34.5%. There are achievements, but the great challenge of closing the gaps in the regions persists
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