Factors influencing university dropouts: The case of a Chilean state university

Abstract

University dropout has negative effects on economic, personal, and institutional levels. Several studies show that this dropout represents a high percentage of public spending on Higher Education, in addition to causing frustrated professionals, decreased intellectual and productive contribution to society, failure to meet institutional their goals, and economic costs for families and institutions. The objective of this study was to determine the sociodemographic, personal, and academic variables that are related to the dropout of students at a state university in southern Chile. For this, a quantitative, non-experimental, descriptive, cross-sectional design was used, with Logistic Regression as an analytical tool. The sample consisted of 2.222 university students, of which 46% were women, 59.3% belonged to the lowest socioeconomic level, 32% studied in public schools, and 35.2% belonged to the Faculty of Engineering and Sciences. The results showed that, in the first year, both the accumulated general average and sociodemographic variables had a significant influence on university dropouts, while, in the second and third years, only the accumulated general average had an influence. In the case of the faculties, the only variable that had a significant influence was the accumulated general average. It is concluded that the accumulated general average is a variable that establishes the difference between those university students who drop out of the university system and those who remain in it. Therefore, constant monitoring of the academic performance, as well as the inclusion of formal academic reinforcement activities, are essential to prevent dropout.