Survey Reports Lack of Support, Parenthood Top Reasons American High School Students Drop Out

Lack of parental and educational support and becoming a parent are two of the most common reasons younger Americans drop out of high school, according to information recently released in the 2012 High School Dropouts in America survey conducted by Harris/Decima on behalf of Everest College.

The national survey of 513 adults aged 19 to 35 found that nearly a quarter of Americans (23%) cited the absence of parental support or encouragement as a reason for not completing high school, followed by 21% who said they became a parent. Missing too many days of school ranked third at 17%, followed by failing classes (15%), uninteresting classes (15%), and suffering from depression or other mental illness (15%).

The survey also found that women are three times more likely than men, 27% versus 9%, to leave high school because they became a parent. When it came to the issue of bullying, white respondents, more than any other racial group, cited bullying (14%) as a reason for dropping out.

More than three-quarters (76%) of respondents had not considered a GED credential or had looked into it, but had yet to pursue entering the program. Time and money were the top two reasons for not seeking a GED credential. According to the survey, 34% cited time as a prohibitive factor, while 26% said associated costs was a reason for not looking into or obtaining their GED credential. Women were more likely than men to say it costs too much (30% vs. 18%).

A third of the high school dropouts surveyed said they were employed either full time, part time, or were self-employed. Men were more likely than women to say they are unemployed (38% vs. 26%). Among those who are employed, nearly half (46%) said they have little to no prospects for advancement in their current position.

Everest College's 2012 High School Dropouts in America survey was conducted online using the Harris Interactive online panel (HPOL) between Oct.3-Oct.18, 2012 among 513 U.S. adults, ages 19 to 35, who did not complete high school. Results were weighted for age, sex, and geographic region to align them with their actual proportions in the population.

Media report:

Huffington Post: High School Dropouts Worsened By Lack Of Support, Becoming A Parent: Survey (16 NOV 12)

Background information:

U.S. Department of Education: Institute of Education Sciences: IES: Dropout Prevention Practice Guide

Alliance for Excellent Education

America's Promise Alliance: Grad Nation Guidebook: A Guidebook to Help Communities Tackle The Dropout Crisis

Alliance for Education Issue Brief: The High Cost of High School Dropouts (August 2009)

Robert Balfanz: National Summit on America’s Silent Epidemic: What your Community Can Do to end its Drop-Out Crisis: Learnings from Research and Practice (May 2007)