What are the independent variables and independent variables to the following statement:?

Question

Success in college as defined by graduating in 5 years after entering of AP students and non AP students. Also, I wnat to throw GPA in there. I'm seventeen years old.

Answer 1

Independent: number of AP/ non AP
Dependent: success in college (GPA)

Answer 2

DV: the outcome - i.e. your measure of success.
IV: what manipulates it - i.e. AP vs. non AP

"the independent variable is adjusted or allowed to change by the scientist, in order to measure the response of the dependent variable . Often the independent variable is time, which is allowed to change, or a physical quantity (such as voltage, force or frequency) that can be accurately adjusted. " from Answers.com (see link below)

Just make sure that you have control variables. With your CV, you can have more than one.

You need to make sure that other factors are considered. You want the two groups to be as much the same as possible, except for AP classes taken. Perhaps AP students have a higher Avg. GPA...so you want to comapre non-AP students that have the same Avg. GPA. GPA would be a control variable. Also, some students may choose a 5 year course of study in college - therefore if they grad. in 6 yrs they "won't" be successful in your view - yet b/c of the advanced nature of their study, perhaps ought to be. Also, there may be some students that don't enter in full time. Your CVs would be all the college students are full time. Another would be they all entered a 4 year course of study.

I think you have an interesting study, but there are flaws. I'm not sure how plan to go about finding out the data required. I think perhaps that a better study might be GPA after the first year of college for AP vs. non-AP students. What you have (or have not) done in HS plays less and less importance as you move up through college. There are more complicated factors involved that would make it harder to find a direct correlation. The study you mentioned would be "interesting" but not riviting as there are too many CV to control.

Good Luck!