Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Education, Competence Development and Career Trajectories: Analysing Data of the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). |
| Subtitle of host publication | Methodology of Educational Measurement and Assessment. |
| Editors | Sabine Weinert, Gwendolin Blossfeld, Hans-Peter Blossfeld |
| Publisher | VS Verlag fur Sozialwissenschaften |
| Pages | 225–248 |
| Number of pages | 24 |
| ISBN (electronic) | 978-3-031-27007-9 |
| ISBN (print) | 978-3-031-27006-2 |
| Publication status | Published - 14 Apr 2023 |
Publication series
| Name | Methodology of Educational Measurement and Assessment |
|---|---|
| ISSN (Print) | 2367-170X |
| ISSN (electronic) | 2367-1718 |
Abstract
In recent years, the high rates of higher education dropout have raised attention of education research and policy makers in Germany. However, due to data privacy legislation, it remains challenging to obtain information about the individual progress of students through higher education and the destinations of non-completers. With conventional administrative or cross-sectional data, it is not possible to distinguish non-completion from dropout, so that it mostly has to remain unclear if non-completers reach graduation elsewhere. This contribution uses the retrospective life course data of the NEPS starting cohort 6 to empirically disentangle non-completion and dropout of full-time students in higher education. We discuss the methodological challenges of conventional approaches and show how the advantages of retrospective life course data can be exploited for higher education research. We furthermore examine the destinations of non-completers and dropouts as well as the labour market returns of dropouts, using sequence data analyses and logistic regressions. Our results show that conventional designs possibly are prone to overestimate dropout rates. Longitudinal analyses of destinations after dropout reveal that the permeability between vocational training and higher education is not unidirectional. Vocational training is a relevant absorber of higher education dropouts, but at the same time, vocational qualifications that were gained prior to higher education work as safety-net that buffers labour market risks of dropouts.
Keywords
- Diversion, Dropout, Higher education, Inequality, Non-completion, Transitions, Vocational training
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Sciences(all)
- Education
- Social Sciences(all)
- Development
Sustainable Development Goals
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Education, Competence Development and Career Trajectories: Analysing Data of the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). : Methodology of Educational Measurement and Assessment.. ed. / Sabine Weinert; Gwendolin Blossfeld; Hans-Peter Blossfeld. VS Verlag fur Sozialwissenschaften, 2023. p. 225–248 (Methodology of Educational Measurement and Assessment).
Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceeding › Contribution to book/anthology › Research › peer review
}
TY - CHAP
T1 - Dropping out of Higher Education in Germany
T2 - Using Retrospective Life Course Data to Determine Dropout Rates and Destinations of Non-Completers
AU - Tieben, Nicole
N1 - This paper uses data from the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS): Starting Cohort Adults, 10.5157/NEPS:SC6:11.1.0. From 2008 to 2013, NEPS data was collected as part of the Framework Program for the Promotion of Empirical Educational Research funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). As of 2014, NEPS is carried out by the Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories (LIfBi) at the University of Bamberg in cooperation with a nationwide network.
PY - 2023/4/14
Y1 - 2023/4/14
N2 - In recent years, the high rates of higher education dropout have raised attention of education research and policy makers in Germany. However, due to data privacy legislation, it remains challenging to obtain information about the individual progress of students through higher education and the destinations of non-completers. With conventional administrative or cross-sectional data, it is not possible to distinguish non-completion from dropout, so that it mostly has to remain unclear if non-completers reach graduation elsewhere. This contribution uses the retrospective life course data of the NEPS starting cohort 6 to empirically disentangle non-completion and dropout of full-time students in higher education. We discuss the methodological challenges of conventional approaches and show how the advantages of retrospective life course data can be exploited for higher education research. We furthermore examine the destinations of non-completers and dropouts as well as the labour market returns of dropouts, using sequence data analyses and logistic regressions. Our results show that conventional designs possibly are prone to overestimate dropout rates. Longitudinal analyses of destinations after dropout reveal that the permeability between vocational training and higher education is not unidirectional. Vocational training is a relevant absorber of higher education dropouts, but at the same time, vocational qualifications that were gained prior to higher education work as safety-net that buffers labour market risks of dropouts.
AB - In recent years, the high rates of higher education dropout have raised attention of education research and policy makers in Germany. However, due to data privacy legislation, it remains challenging to obtain information about the individual progress of students through higher education and the destinations of non-completers. With conventional administrative or cross-sectional data, it is not possible to distinguish non-completion from dropout, so that it mostly has to remain unclear if non-completers reach graduation elsewhere. This contribution uses the retrospective life course data of the NEPS starting cohort 6 to empirically disentangle non-completion and dropout of full-time students in higher education. We discuss the methodological challenges of conventional approaches and show how the advantages of retrospective life course data can be exploited for higher education research. We furthermore examine the destinations of non-completers and dropouts as well as the labour market returns of dropouts, using sequence data analyses and logistic regressions. Our results show that conventional designs possibly are prone to overestimate dropout rates. Longitudinal analyses of destinations after dropout reveal that the permeability between vocational training and higher education is not unidirectional. Vocational training is a relevant absorber of higher education dropouts, but at the same time, vocational qualifications that were gained prior to higher education work as safety-net that buffers labour market risks of dropouts.
KW - Diversion
KW - Dropout
KW - Higher education
KW - Inequality
KW - Non-completion
KW - Transitions
KW - Vocational training
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85153284255&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-3-031-27007-9_10
DO - 10.1007/978-3-031-27007-9_10
M3 - Contribution to book/anthology
SN - 978-3-031-27006-2
T3 - Methodology of Educational Measurement and Assessment
SP - 225
EP - 248
BT - Education, Competence Development and Career Trajectories: Analysing Data of the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS).
A2 - Weinert, Sabine
A2 - Blossfeld, Gwendolin
A2 - Blossfeld, Hans-Peter
PB - VS Verlag fur Sozialwissenschaften
ER -