Analysis of attrition over a 7-year period at the Faculty of Medicine, king Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah

Abstract EN

The purpose of this study is to determine the attrition rate at the Faculty of Medicine from 1996 to 2002.

Review of all students’ records (males and females) matriculated during the study period.

Non-graduating students’ records were further examined to differentiate academic from nonacademic attrition and to determine the length of stay in the faculty, frequency of failing examinations and curriculum level at leaving the faculty.

Out of 1,725 students admitted to the faculty, 359 left the faculty without graduation.

This gives an attrition rate of 20.8 % (10.9 % for academic reasons).

For the non-academic attrition, 81.3 % of the students leave after one year, 28.7 % of them without failing any examination.

In the academic attrition group, 50.5 % of the students are dismissed after 2 years and another 25.5% after 3 years.

73.4 % of these students fail 4 times before being dismissed.

50.5 % of the academic attrition is at the first year of the curriculum.

The first year of the curriculum seems to be the biggest hurdle for students.

Factual burden, relevance, and types of assessment require review to decrease the academic attrition.

Better information about the medical studies should be provided to the students before matriculation to decrease non-academic attrition.