From dropout to continuation in a higher education course

The study set out to ascertain how students, who begin a Higher Education course which is not their first option, adapt to the Faculty and why they do not drop out.Data was obtained by means of questionnaires and semi-structured interviews given to students who had entered Higher Education for the first time in 2004/2005.The findings indicated that students began to understand the profession, the type of population they are likely to work with and the type of work they may perform through the practical academic activities carried out during the course. Student involvement in the course and their pedagogical relationship were seen to be the most important factors in their decision to stay on the course.