Reasons for dropping out of intermediate vocational education and training in Spain: the influence of sociodemographic characteristics and academic background

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article analyses the main reasons for dropping out of Spanish Intermediate Vocational Education (IVET) and the link to personal (sex, ethnicity, age), family (parents’ educational level) and financial sociodemographic characteristics, as well as academic background (repeating or expulsion). To do this, a cohort of IVET students was monitored over three years via three questionnaires presenting the results for students who, over the monitoring period, dropped out without obtaining the corresponding qualification. The study was carried out in a Mediterranean region (Mallorca) with the highest levels of school dropout in Spain and an economy essentially centred on tourism. Results show that the most important reasons for dropping out are finding a job or wanting to find one, obtaining bad results and wanting to do other courses. The analysis highlights differences in reasons for dropping out by sex, ethnicity, age, the perception of financial difficulties and previous academic background. The findings suggest that educational interventions aimed at reducing dropout at this level of education should take into account the heterogeneity of student profiles as well as the limitations of the quantitative perspective in analysing students’ reasons for dropping out.