Abstract

University dropout rates in Chile are highest during the first and second years of undergraduate studies, varying according to program, gender, and financial resources. This qualitative study explores institutional dynamics in the construction of human capital among women who are mothers, focusing on dropout in the absence of parental support policies. The study was conducted with female university students in the Metropolitan Region who experienced unintended pregnancies. These women, due to cultural constructions that subordinate the feminine, assumed primary responsibility for childcare, facing tensions between family life and personal development. After childbirth, change in time management and increased financial costs were observed, revealing institutional barriers that hindered academic progress towards timely graduation. The research underscores the need for an intersectional approach to understand how the lack of formal parental support measures reproduce inequalities within the educational system.