On November 19, 2025, a public debate was held in the village of Rostushe to encourage an initiative to take specific measures to retain as many students as possible in the local high school, through the activation of the educational administration, local government, business community and families, and most importantly, adapting the municipal high school to the needs and interests of the students and the community.
The initiator of the debate was the local civil society organization ZEUKS Triton, which conducted a survey with 94 respondents (46 ninth grade students and 48 parents) from October 10 to 30, 2025 and provided a solid basis for understanding the phenomenon of migration of students from the rural municipality of Mavrovo and Rostushe to urban high schools.
The survey research deals with detecting the main reasons why most students who complete primary education in the municipalities of Mavrovo and Rostuše decide to continue their secondary education outside, in an urban environment.
The research examines the factors that influence the decision to choose a secondary school, with a special focus on migration to urban schools versus remaining in local educational institutions.
The main findings show a massive tendency towards urban schools, where 76.1% of students believe that they will have better opportunities if they study in the city, while 78.3% have friends who plan to enrol in a city school. However, there is a significant segment of undecided families (30-40%) who represent a critical target group for interventions and campaigns to retain students in local schools.
The most significant factor attracting students to city schools is the lack of desired vocational guidance in local schools (average score 4.44 out of 5), with 72.1% of students giving the highest score to this factor. In parallel, 72.3% of parents cite the quality of teaching as the main reason for choosing a school. On the other hand, 68.1% of parents stated that they would support the local school if conditions improved, indicating room for strategic interventions.
The public debate activated local stakeholders and created a basis for concrete solutions aimed at the goal of retaining the maximum number of students in the local secondary school.
A successful student retention strategy must be multidimensional through the introduction of relevant vocational profiles, visible improvement of infrastructure and equipment, aggressive and transparent communication about the quality of local education, and targeted financial support for the critical segment of undecided families. It is critical to understand that emotional appeals and proximity to family are not strong enough motivators – parents and students are looking for objective evidence of quality, opportunities, and future.
The initiative of ZEUKS Triton is being implemented within the framework of the project “Alliances for Active Citizenry”, supported by the European Union.
