Elena Gorbunova - Master in Sociology, Analyst, Institute of Education, National Research University Higher School of Economics. Address: 20 Myasnitskaya Str., 101000 Moscow, Russian Federation. E-mail: e.gorbunova88@gmail.com

Student withdrawal (attrition) is becoming an actual phenomenon due to demographic changes, modernization of the economy and education, especially for universities located in economically depressed areas. The tradition of research on student withdrawal is still  being formed in Russia, so it is important to clarify the main terminology used for the analysis of withdrawal, to develop a theoretical framework that takes into account the specifics of Russian universities, and to specify the prospects for the elaboration of research. A review of the terminology used in international studies to study the withdrawal as well as the history of studying this phenomenon in the USA is presented. The basic concepts of withdrawal, developed in sociology, psychology, organization theory and economics, are considered. They indicate the effectiveness of accounting for a wide range of factors of differing natures in the study of withdrawal: the processes of social and academic integration, the psychological characteristics of students, the organizational characteristics of the university and educational programs. When adapting existing models to Russian higher education, it is important to take into account that compulsory withdrawal caused by academic failure of students predominates in Russian universities, while international models were created to describe voluntary withdrawal from higher education institutions. National research which can serve as the basis for the development of a model of student withdrawal from Russian universities is analyzed.