Discussion for access, permanence, graduation and institutional strategies in higher education 2010-2023

Abstract

The present article contains a systematic review of the literature on access, retention/dropout, graduation, and institutional strategies in higher education, with a focus on Latin America, specifically Nicaragua. It was conducted from a qualitative perspective using a Hermeneutic approach, employing etymological tracking and a search in databases. The study aims to build the case for a deeper examination of these issues in higher education discussions, in a systematic manner, particularly concerning indigenous and Afro-descendant communities. To achieve this, fifteen studies from Latin America and twenty from Nicaragua were analyzed. The studies reveal very similar findings regarding access, retention, dropout, and graduation, with conclusions pointing to multicausality, complexity, and dynamics. The research has been approached from an institutional analysis (higher education institutions) without considering specific origins, particularly at the ethnic or community level (Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendant peoples, and minorities, among others). It is emphasized that most studies primarily focus on studying the phenomenon of dropout as the central issue.