Why Students Leave Their Majors: A Meta-Ethnography

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to examine and integrate the findings of several qualitative studies on student attrition in higher education to identify the factors that influenced study participants’ decisions to switch out or drop out of their initially chosen majors. This meta-ethnography included nine qualitative studies that were analyzed using Noblit and Hare's (1988) seven-step approach to the synthesis of qualitative research. Findings indicate that study participants shared feelings of being underprepared for the academic challenges associated with their chosen majors, that they experienced a lack of support throughout their experience as students in their programs, and that the combination of the lack of preparation and lack of support led students to feel overwhelmed. The findings suggest that students who choose to leave their majors may need additional support from those in their academic areas of interest, as well as from academic advisors.

Keywords

meta-ethnography ethnography student attrition STEM decisionmaking

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