School Leavers Survey, 1991 [Canada]

The primary purpose of the survey was to establish a hight school leaver rate for Canada and the provinces, as well as develop comparative profiles of three groups of secondary school attendees: those who successfully completed high school, those still in high school and those who left high school before receiving a diploma or certificate. It was to obtain information on factors affecting the potential for a successful transition to the labour market, labour market experience and quality of life. The survey was designed to address questions of what environmental, social, attitudinal, personal and economic factors contribute to the early departure of some students from school to the labour force, their early labour market experiences and their quality of life. As it was seen at the outset, results from a Leavers Survey would allow analysts to better understand the relationship between leavers and their backgrounds and subsequent labour market experiences. It was hoped that the results would provide counsellors with better information on the impact of leaving high school. With the information collected by the survey, it would be possible to have a better understanding of the factors behind an individual's behaviour, career choices and successes or failures during the period prior to their entry into the labour market through a set of current and retrospective questions.