One of the biggest challenges in the higher education sector has been the recent growth of online universities.

Question: 

One of the biggest challenges in the  higher education sector has been the recent growth of online  universities. The Online Education Database is an independent  organisation whose mission is to build a comprehensive list of  accredited online colleges.  contains data on the retention rate (%) and  the graduation rate (%) for 29 online colleges in the United States.

  College RR(%) GR(%)   Western International University 7 25   South University 51 25   University of Phoenix 4 28   American InterContinental University 29 32   Franklin University 33 33   Devry University 47 33   Tiffin University 63 34   Post University 45 36   Peirce College 60 36   Everest University 62 36   Upper Iowa University 67 36   Dickinson State University 65 37   Western Governors University 78 37   Kaplan University 75 38   Salem International University 54 39   Ashford University 45 41   ITT Technical Institute 38 44   Berkeley College 51 45   Grand Canyon University 69 46   Nova Southeastern University 60 47   Westwood College 37 48   Everglades University 63 50   Liberty University 73 51   LeTourneau University 78 52   Rasmussen College 48 53   Keiser University 95 55   Herzing College 68 56   National University 100 57   Florida National College 100 61    

Instructions

Conduct a simple linear regression  analysis to examine the association between the ‘retention rate’ (the  independent variable) and the ‘graduation rate’ (the dependent  variable). Using the Excel data file, prepare a 1200 word repot using  the following structure.

Purpose

In this section, the purpose of the report need to be clearly and concisely stated.

Background

In this section, write an overview of  the association between retention and graduation. Why would economists  be interested in this particular issue?

Method 

In this section, provide a brief  overview of the data and empirical approach used to examine the  association between retention and graduation.

Results 

1. Provide a descriptive analysis of the two variables (e.g., mean standard deviation, minimum and maximum).
   
   
2. Develop a scatter diagram with retention rate as the independent  variable. What does the scatter diagram indicate about the relationship  between the two variables?
   
   
3. Estimate a regression equation that can be used to predict the graduation rate (%) given the retention rate (%)
   
   
4. State the estimated regression equation and interpret the meaning of the slope coefficient
   
   
5. Is there a statistically significant association between graduation rate (%) and retention rate (%). Explain
   
   
6. Did the regression equation provide a good fit? Explain
   
   
7. Suppose you were the president of South University. After reviewing  the results, would you have any concerns about the performance of your  university compared to other online universities?
   
   
8. Suppose you were the president of the University of Phoenix. After  reviewing the results, would you have any concerns about the performance  of your university compared to other online universities?