Economics and Quantitative Analysis: Linear Regression Report

Running head: ECONOMICS AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
ECONOMICS AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS: LINEAR REGRESSION REPORT
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1ECONOMICS AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
Introduction and purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the relation between the retention rate and
graduation rate of students in 29 online universities of the USA. This study will be beneficial for
the online universities to assess their possibilities in increasing student retention rates and
thereby graduation rates of the student and take according measures for growth. Graduation rate
refers to the percentage of students completing the courses and attaining the degree, while
retention rate refers to the students that continue their studies with a particular university rather
than switching to any other competitor university. Retention rate is the independent variable and
graduation rate is the dependent variable for this study. It can be assumed that these rates are
associated, that is, if retention rate is high, the graduation rate should also be high. In other
words, higher retention rate should lead to higher graduation rate in the online colleges, while it
is not always the case.
Background
The success of a university highly depends on the graduation rate of its students. The
higher the graduation rate, the higher is the number of students in the university, which indicates
its growth. Thus, retention rate of the students is also important. In case of online universities,
students are often skeptical about the reputation and credibility of the university and thus, if the
retention rate is high, the universities can create a positive image among the other potential
students. Hence, it is essential to explore the causal relationship between the dependent and
independent variable of this study. It is important for the economists as well as for the
universities to understand the impact of retention rate on the graduation rate as that would help
them to make relevant policies and improvements in the course work so that the students do not

2ECONOMICS AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
switch their universities in the middle of their courses as that not only hampers the reputation of
the university but also hampers the education of the students.
Method
To evaluate the relationship between the dependent and independent variable in this
study, that is, graduation rate and retention rate, linear regression method will be applied. Data
on these variables was gathered on 29 accredited online universities of the USA from The Online
Education Database. This report will contain descriptive analysis of these variables along with
regression analysis and scatter diagram. Descriptive statistics will be used to highlight the
average, standard deviation, minimum and maximum of the data as that helps in understanding
the distribution pattern. Scatter diagram will show how much one variable is affected by the
other. Regression analysis will examine the causal relationship between the dependent and
independent variables.
Results
- Descriptive analysis
Retention rate (RR%)
Mean
57.4137
9
Standard Error
4.31560
3
Median 60
Mode 51
Standard
Deviation
23.2402
3
Sample
Variance
540.108
4
Kurtosis
0.46175
7