Determinants in University Desertion and Graduation: An Application using Duration Models

This study examines the issue of student departure from a public university. Non-parametric proportional hazard models are used to estimate the quantitative and qualitative effects of the students’ personal and socioeconomic characteristics on the probability of their dropping out or graduating. Data include a cohort of students who started studying accounting at the National University of Rosario, Argentina, in 1991. The results are useful to evaluate and design public policies in the educational sector.