Many factors impinge on student decisions whether to complete a program.
Most speakers at the workshop agreed, therefore, that the raw data on the extent and timing of attrition must be supplemented with more contextual or qualitative data in order to analyze the causes of attrition. In addition, they emphasized the need to gather this qualitative data at the institutional level. The types of information they felt would be useful would include the financial resources available for students, selection and retention policies, and the culture of departmental relationships with graduate students. Although commonly believed to be a key factor in student completion, the speakers generally agreed that data on the amount of resources provided to individual students is extremely difficult to obtain. They also emphasized the importance of data on the timing and types of support available.