Study of enlistment test scores and other attrition factors from the Navy's delayed entry program

• Main Author: Greenamyer, Darren H.
• Other Authors: Eitelberg, Mark J.
• Published: Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School 2012
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/4870

Approved for public release, distribution unlimited === This study focuses on the effects of the Armed Forces Qualification Test (AFQT) percentile score and age on Navy Delayed Entry Program (DEP) attrition. The data used in the study were collected from fiscal years 1999 through 2008 and were provided by the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC). Men and women were analyzed separately because of historic differences in attrition by gender and sample size. Regression analysis was conducted using three different models, each with age and AFQT score as the primary variables of interest. In the first model, with the use of an interaction variable, the effect of AFQT score on DEP attrition depended upon the age of the individual. The second and third models employed only binary variables to estimate a Linear Probability Model (LPM). The results of this study indicate that the effect of AFQT score on DEP attrition depends on the age of the individual. Generally as a person gets older, he or she is more likely to attrite from the DEP. Males generally have lower attrition rates than females. High school graduates make up the majority of DEP applicants, and generally have lower attrition rates than persons holding other Education Credentials.