Why Would-Be Students Aren’t Choosing College
Sara Weissman
September 29, 2022
A new study explores why students drop out of college or choose not to enroll.
A new study suggests that students choose to stop out of college and others choose not to enroll in the first place because of a range of “psychographics,” or psychological factors, including doubts about the financial returns of a college education and an awareness of other career training options outside traditional degree programs.
The study draws on responses from 11 focus groups and an online survey of 1,675 people between the ages of 18 and 30 who decided not to go to college or stopped out of a college program. The survey was fielded in March and April of this year and was conducted by HCM Strategists, a public policy and advocacy consulting firm, and Edge Research, a marketing research firm, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
