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SPSS® Software Enables Babson College Students to Learn Statistics for the Real
World
Source: www.spss.com
Copyright SPSS, Inc. 2004
07/26/04
This is a dated announcement. The material in this announcement could be superceded by
more current announcements.
Students use SPSS software on projects such as determining the best places in
Massachusetts to live
CHICAGO, 07/22/04 — Students at Wellesley, Mass.-based Babson College are learning to
apply statistics to real world applications using statistical software from SPSS Inc.
(NASDAQ: SPSSE), a worldwide leader of predictive analytics technology and services. With
the aid of SPSS® for Windows®, SPSS Inc.’s flagship statistical and data management
software, Babson students were recently able to apply the conceptual statistical analysis
techniques they learned in the classroom to a real world experience with a Boston
publication looking to identify the best places to live in Massachusetts.
“Teaching statistics in the classroom is one thing, but statisticians work outside of
the classroom. My students must be adequately trained to handle the statistical challenges
they will face in the real world,” said I. Elaine Allen, associate professor of
statistics and entrepreneurship at Babson College. “SPSS statistical software is the
standard for classroom teaching because it enables students to hone their statistical
analysis and develop practical problem-solving abilities that apply in the real
world.”
A recent example of the role SPSS plays in teaching Babson students real world
applications of statistical analysis is the school’s recent joint research project
with Boston Magazine. This past April, Babson students were tasked with analyzing survey
data for the publication’s annual “Best Places to Live” issue: http://www.bostonmagazine.com/ArticleDisplay.php?id=366.For
the project, the students compiled a ranking of 147 communities in Greater Boston, taking
into consideration the many factors that comprise living in a given community. Using the
median home prices for each town as a baseline, the students considered the factors most
important to homebuyers including costs (taxes and fees), quality of education, public
safety, health, environment, lifestyle, and more. The students also incorporated survey
data from real estate agents who were asked to prioritize the factors most important to
homebuyers. The rankings were then developed by comparing each town’s actual median
housing price to a predicted housing price based on the town’s characteristics.
Ultimately, the Babson students named Marblehead, Mass. as the state’s best place to
live. The town, which is near Boston’s North Shore, scored high in key areas while
having a median home price of less than 45 percent of the most expensive community.
Complete results from the study can be reviewed at http://www.bostonmagazine.com/pdf/apr_gatefold.xls.
“Weighing the data and then testing our regression models was critical for the study,
and we were impressed with the ability to easily move data back and forth between
Microsoft® Excel® and SPSS without sacrificing productivity and data integrity,”
said Allen.
SPSS software remains the de facto standard for statistical tools in the academic
environment. Established in 1968 with its beginnings at Stanford University and the
University of Chicago's National Opinion Research Center, SPSS both advanced and
democratized the field of data analysis. More than three decades later, the Company's
initial software offering remains among the market's most widely used and respected
statistical analysis packages. More than 250,000 organizations worldwide rely on SPSS for
conducting survey research, database analysis and scientific reporting.
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