Factors of Student Completion

Tuition and fees can be expensive, but many students need to work just to pay their living expenses and fulfill family responsibilities. More than a third (36 percent) of college students who dropped out say that even if their tuition and books were fully paid for, it would be hard to return.

Source: Johnson, Jean et al. With their Whole Lives Ahead of them: Myths and Realities about why so many Students Fail to Finish College. Public Agenda for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, December 2009.