University studies in Greece are characterised by a symptom usually described as "prolonged student status". This refers to students who prolong the period of their studies beyond the expected length for degrees, sometimes by many years. This article, as well as recording the distribution of the duration of studies in a public institution, reveals that a longer period of studies is strongly and negatively associated with academic performance. It then seeks to identify the causes of the symptom by examining two hypotheses. The first attributes prolonged student status to the operation of some objective factors such as differences in students' initial abilities and differences in students' socio-economic background. The second hypothesis associates a long stay at the university with the educational setting. The existing evidence lends support to the second hypothesis. (Contains 6 tables, 2 figures and 2 notes.)