Withdrawal from attending education or training resulting in a failure to meet the course objectives.

Comment:

1. this term designates both the process (early school leaving) and the persons (early school leavers) who fail to complete a course;
2. besides early school leavers, dropouts may also include learners who have completed education or training but failed the examinations.

SOURCE: Terminology of European education and training policy-a selection of 100 key terms, CEDEFOP, Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2008.