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. 2022 May 25;8(5):e09504.
doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09504. eCollection 2022 May.

Exploring the relationship between mental health-related problems and undergraduate student dropout: A case study within a civil engineering program

A A Del Savio  1 , K Galantini  1   2 , A Pachas  1
Affiliations

Exploring the relationship between mental health-related problems and undergraduate student dropout: A case study within a civil engineering program

A A Del Savio et al. Heliyon. .

Abstract

Dropout has always been a concerning issue within higher education. This research explores the relationship between mental health-related problems and undergraduate students' dropout rates amid the COVID-19 pandemic and within a civil engineering program. The study is quantitative descriptive, with a non-experimental and longitudinal design. Results show that the dropout rates of civil engineering students from a private university have increased, comparing before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily due to mental health-related problems. Three strong tendencies within these rates have been detected, directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was concluded that undergraduate students' mental health had been undermined due to the pandemics, which has had an immediate impact on the increase of dropout rates.

Keywords: COVID-19; Dropout rates; Mental health; Undergraduate dropout.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Student dropout rates within a civil engineering program, from 2018 to 2021.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Motives for the student dropouts within a civil engineering program, from 2018 to 2021.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Mental health-related reasons associated with student dropouts by gender, within a civil engineering program, from 2018 to 2021.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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