College Dropouts Cite Low Money and High Stress

[groovedaddy]

Most dropouts leave college because they have trouble going to school while working to support themselves, according to a report released Wednesday by Public Agenda, a nonpartisan research group.

The report, “With Their Whole Lives Ahead of Them,” was based on a recent survey of more than 600 individuals aged 22 to 30, comparing those who started a college education but did not complete it with those who received a degree or certificate from a two- or four-year institution.

With the Obama administration pushing to improve the nation’s competitiveness by doubling the number of college graduates, many educators, foundations and policy groups are turning their attention to college dropouts.

While 2.8 million students enroll in some form of higher education each year, most do not proceed straight through to graduation. Only one in five of those who enroll in two-year institutions earn an associate degree within three years, and only two in five of those who start four-year colleges complete their degrees within six years.

“The conventional wisdom is that students leave school because they aren’t willing to work hard and aren’t really interested in more education,” said Jean Johnson, executive vice president of Public Agenda. “What we found was almost precisely the opposite. Most work and go to school at the same time, and most are not getting financial help from their families or the system itself.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/10/education/10graduate....

[mike_c]

1. there is something to be said for waiting until well into adulthood...

...before going to college, I think. For some students, having somewhat better means, longer economic history, different expectations, and so on are among them.

I didn't start part time community college until I was in my late twenties, and didn't complete my baccalaureate degree until I was in my mid thirties. Of course, "non-traditional" students bring another whole set of issues to the table-- focusing on my education at that point in my life undoubtedly contributed to the destruction of my marriage and family life. But the fact remains that at 18 or 19 I simply could not have done it-- couldn't afford it, wasn't mature enough, focused enough, and arguably, wasn't intellectually prepared.

Now that I'm a university prof, I find that more mature students OFTEN succeed better than late teenagers or early twenty-somethings. Not always, of course, but maturity IS a contributor to the likelihood of academic success.

[Wapsie B]

2. Which is why one of my dreams is to help in that regard.

Setting up a foundation that would help students in such situations is the first thing I'd do with a fortune.