STUDENTS' PERSPECTIVE. THE MAIN FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO STUDENTS' DROPOUTS

Abstract

Students' Perspective. The Main Factors That Contribute To Students' Dropouts. This qualitative study aims at analyzing the factors that contribute to dropout among students. The research was conducted on six different campuses ( University of Camerino - Italy, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest - Romania, University Panepistimio Thessalias - Greece, Socialini? Moksl? Kolegija - Lietuva, Spain Zaragoza's University - Spain, Cukurova University - Turkey) and consisted of an open-ended interview with a sample of students. Data from the interviews were analyzed using a thematic constant comparison approach. The analysis of the data was based on Qualitative Content Analysis. The main themes were identified. The results reveal that the factors contributing to dropout were mainly related with the personal characteristics of the students, such as gender, age, the type of institution, and the knowledge of the institution. These characteristics were also related to the attitudes of the institution and the faculty toward the students. College factors that can hinder students were also identified. The students' perspective is helpful in assisting the school and the parents to discover the causes of dropout. The school and the parents should be aware that dropouts have negative effects on their personal development by delaying the students' academic development. The school should also take care of the students' personal relationships with teachers, classmates, parents, and siblings. They should take care of the students' personal relationships with classmates and with teachers.A survey was conducted with 540 students who had completed the clinical clerkship. The response rate was 84%(475 valid answers)