Tune in, turn on, drop out?

Following an earlier post, one of the DL programme members came back to me with thoughts on why people drop out and don't complete their MBA.

The question raised went back to why students embark on an MBA in the first place. Is it because (a) they feel they ought to or (b) because they want to. The follow-on question was whether drop out rates are higher for those who were in the first category.

I don't know whether that is true, though it's an interesting thought. My own view is that you may well feel more motivated to get through the hard times on an MBA if you have paid for it yourself, or if you strongly believe you have chosen to be there. However, I don't think that is the whole story. I would be interested to see whether there are other factors at work and the extent to which someone is equipped with 'tools' to cope with the stresses and strains of study.