Resumen

DUBS, Renie. Completing Or Dropping Out Postgraduate Education: A Synthesis Of Theoretical Models. Investigación y Postgrado [online]. 2005, vol.20, n.1, pp.55-79. ISSN 1316-0087.

There is a growing concern among educators regarding the evaluation of postgraduate studies. One of the aspects to be examined is the rates of completion and student desertion. The impact of postgraduate studies in Venezuela depends, to a large degree, upon statistics released by individual institutions in four categories: graduates, students waiting to present their thesis, students that have completed the theoretical courses and student progress by academic term. The completion and drop out mean is established by institutionalized administrative procedures. This paper examines the factors, according to published reports, that influence students when making the decision of staying or dropping out of a postgraduate program. The models of Baird (1993), Ford (1992) and Tinto (1993), associated with concepts like intellectual competence, social integration and personal motivation are analyzed. By relying on such theories it is possible to evaluate the decision making process of students in order to act upon the problem, in the design of actions to be taken to increase the completion rate and therefore the index of graduates and the validations of the Venezuelan reality.

Palabras clave : postgraduate studies evaluation; student drop out rates; student completion rate; theoretical model.