There is consensus that having a high proportion of early school leavers (ESLs) has serious consequences both for individuals and society. Reducing the rates of ESL as well as fighting poverty and social exclusion are two out of five headline targets within the EU-2020-Strategy. Research has repeatedly demonstrated that growing up in a socio-economically disadvantaged family is a strong predictor of low educational attainment, disengagement at school, ESL and social exclusion (Bourdieu/Passeron 1977; Coleman 1966; Reay/Lucey 2004). Although the concept of social exclusion is widely used, there is little understanding of what social exclusion means to young people themselves (Redmond/Skattebol 2014; MacDonald 2008). The investigation outlined here intends to explore young people’s sense of social exclusion and the underlying processes that lead to such feelings of exclusion. According to international theoretical concepts (Atkinson 1998, Castel 2003, Levitas et al. 2007) social exclusion of early school leavers is examined as a multidimensional and dynamic process that often starts in a socially disadvantaged family and adverse experiences at school. The theoretical framework combines Bourdieus concepts of capital (economic, cultural, social and symbolic), habitus and field with social exclusion theory.

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