Eco 251 Quantitative Business Analysis I

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COURSE SYLLABUS ECO 251 QUANTITATIVE BUSINESS ANALYSIS I SPRING 2008

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Roger Even Bove

OFFICE: Anderson Hall, Room 317D

MAILING ADDRESS: Department of Economics & Finance WEST CHESTER UNIVERSITY West Chester, PA 19383 - 2220

OFFICE TELEPHONE: 610-436-2134

E-MAIL ADDRESS: [email protected]. I check this much more frequently than my voice mail but see SKILLS below.

WEBSITE: http://courses.wcupa.edu/rbove/eco251/251key.html. Check the notices on this site at least once a week. This site is also accessible through Blackboard.

PREREQUISITE: ECO 111, 112 MAT 105, 107, 108, 110 or 161. ECO/FIN majors and ECO minors are Advised to take MAT 108 before this course. To be successful in this course, Students must be able to manipulate data and formulas using a spreadsheet package such as Excel. To gain the required spreadsheet skills, students may take CSW101 or ECO410 - Special Topics – (1 cr.) Using Spreadsheets to Solve Business Problems. See Skills below.

OFFICE HOURS: These hours frequently conflict with faculty meetings. Check the website before coming in. A schedule is also posted on my door.

MW Noon-2:00 PM TR 3:15-5:00 PM

I am also usually available after 2PM Monday and Wednesday afternoons and after 5:00 PM on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. You are encouraged to come in at your convenience without appointment (Call in advance to be sure that I am in). If you don't understand what is going on in class, please come to my office

REQUIRED TEXTS: Berenson, Mark L., David M. Levine and Timothy C. Krehbiel. Basic Business Statistics, 10th ed., Prentice-Hall, 2004. ISBN 0131037919.

Supplementary Materials & Tables For ECO 251 & 252. Available from Dynamic Student Services, 20 Linden St. for about $7.00.

Douglas Downing and Jeffrey Clark, Business Statistics, 4th ed. (or 3rd ed.), Barrons Educational Series, 2003. (D and C in outline.) Note that I will use these 3 books in ECO 252 in Fall 2006.

RECOMMENDED TEXTS: Shelly, Cashman, and Vermaat, Office 2003, Introductory Concepts and Techniques, 2nd ed., Thomson,2006. ISBN:1418853593.

Ryan, Joiner and Ryan, Minitab Handbook, 5th. ed., Duxbury Press, Boston, 2005.

Larry Gonick and Woolcott Smith, The Cartoon Guide to Statistics, Harper Collins, 1993 can be ordered from book or comics stores). These will be on reserve in the library.

ALSO SUGGESTED: There are a number of statistics and other economics books available in the library or for sale in the Economics and Finance Department offices.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course teaches students to analyze data and solve problems using descriptive statistics and probability theory. Topics covered include discrete and continuous probability distributions, and sampling distributions. The course will stress practical business applications of statistical theory. Students will be required to obtain and interpret descriptive statistics using Excel and Minitab. 252syll 1/04/08

COURSE OBJECTIVES: Learning Objectives of the course:

1. To learn how to visualize and statistically describe data. This includes discussion of graphing; and basic measures of central tendency and variability. 2. To understand probability theory which includes understanding conditional probability and random sampling. 3. To understand discrete probability distributions and how to calculate the mean, variance, and standard deviation of a binomial random variable. 4. To understand continuous probability distributions, particularly the Normal distribution, how to assess normality, and how to calculate and interpret the mean and standard deviation of the Normal random variable. 5. To understand sampling distributions, biased and unbiased estimates, and the Central Limit Theorem. 6. To learn how to calculate and interpret confidence intervals for population means and how to determine the appropriate sample size.

SKILLS: Skills important to business students include critical thinking, quantitative methods, use of appropriate technology and written communication. Thus, in addition to the prerequisites above you are expected to be able to express yourself in writing. All e-mails to the instructor should be in grammatically correct but not terribly formal English with the spelling checked! On exams and other assignments you are expected to turn in legible and clear papers. To fulfill the technology requirement, you will be given an exercise in Excel in the first few weeks of the class. Assistance will be available, but you will be expected to do the work on your own. In fulfillment of the critical thinking requirement, you are expected to demonstrate knowledge of appropriate and inappropriate use of statistical methods.

EQUIPMENT etc.: Get a decent calculator and read the instruction book! If you need advice on what to get, ask a Finance instructor (Hewlett Packard HP10B.). Then get another calculator as a backup! If both fail you during an exam, talk to the instructor then, not after you do badly on the exam! If you intend to use your own copy of Excel, make sure that the statistical functions in it work. Make sure that you have access to a copy of Excel with statistical functions enabled. To enable statistical functions, enter Excel and use the Tools pull-down menu. Select Add-Ins and check Analysis Tool Pack and MegaStat. Buy a stapler; it will pay for itself in papers not lost. Get a stapler!

CLASS CANCELLATION: If the university is not officially closed, assume your class will meet unless there is a notice on departmental stationary, signed by the chairperson, posted on the classroom door. If there is any doubt, check with the department secretary on the third floor. If I am occasionally very late to class, it would be reasonable to send someone up to inquire in the department office, rather than to assume that there will be no class.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS: This course requires you to solve problems in homework and on tests. It is suggested that you get into the problem-solving habit. If you have difficulty with a problem, ask for an explanation, you'll help yourself, promote classroom discussion, and probably help fellow students in the process. If you don't understand what is going on in class, please come to my office.

EXAMINATION POLICY: University policy is that there is no excused absence from a scheduled examination. Therefore, a scheduled and preannounced exam which is missed will not be made up and a grade of F will be recorded, with the limited exception of cases in which the absence is wholly in- voluntary and unavoidable, and the reason for which is documented by ev- idence that can be verified by the instructor. Practically speaking, such cases normally include only illness attended by physician or nurse, and avoidable absences on official University business. Not included would be absences due to "oversleeping," "not ready for the exam," "other exams the same day," "change in outside schedule," "job inter- view," "extra-curricular club or organization events," "car wouldn't start," etc... Nevertheless, please talk to the instructor about any such situation. After the first exam, exams will be "open book". Please 2 252syll 1/04/08 bring your own tables and notes to the exam and do not share anything with others. You are expected to bring a working calculator to each exam. A back-up calculator is advisable. Xerox any tables or computer output that you wish to share.

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Exams may be given on Tuesdays or Thursdays in the 3:00-5:00 slot. Arrangements will be made for students who cannot take exams during that hour. Students will normally be expected to make up the exam on the day before it is given. It often takes two weeks to grade and return exams. Keys will be returned or posted with exams. All exams will be open book. Don't let that fool you. You still need to practice the use of formulas and to understand when methods are used.

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY The business faculty is committed to vigorously enforcing the University’s academic dishonesty policy. At a minimum, students will receive a 0 in an assignment; at the maximum, students may be dismissed from the University. Academic dishonesty and plagiarism are defined in the Undergraduate Catalog. It is not academic dishonesty in Statistics to help someone with a take-home assignment unless actual computations and solutions are exchanged. With respect to term papers, projects, and other written work, students must use quotation marks and reference when using another author’s exact words. Students must also reference when paraphrasing an idea or the words of an author.

ACCOMMODATIONS We at West Chester University wish to make accommodations for people with disabilities. Please make your needs known by contacting me and/or the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities at X3217. Sufficient notice is needed in order to make accommodations possible. The University desires to comply with the ADA of 1990.

NON-DISCRIMINATION (Affirmative Action Policy) West Chester University is committed to providing leadership in extending equal opportunities to all individuals. Accordingly, the University will continue to make every effort to provide these rights to all persons regardless of race, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, or veteran status. This policy applies to all members of the University community, including students, staff, and administrators. It also applies to all applicants for admission or employment and all participants in University-sponsored activities. Any individual having suggestions, problems, complaints or grievances with regard to equal opportunity or affirmative action is encouraged to contact the Director of Social Equity.

The University prohibits discrimination, including sexual harassment, of any individual based on race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, religious creed, disability or veteran status.

CUT POLICY: I will consider your presence and participation when making up grades. Exams are based on lecture materials and absence is foolhardy. More than three unexcused absences when attendance is taken will result in a lowered grade. Legitimate excuses are University – Sanctioned events (as specified in the Ram’s Eye View , illness and family emergencies and do not include family vacations or hunting trips.

EVALUATION POLICY: Student progress in this course is determined by three one-hour examinations (which will be announced at least one week in advance), a final exam, class participation and homework evalua- tions. Primary weight is on the hour exams (about 2/9 of grade each) and the final exam (1/3 of grade).

Grading will be on a curve based on numerical scores from these exercises. Course and Final exam grades are available on request by e-mail. You are expected to pick up all other exams.

A number of graded assignments and take-home exam sections may also be assigned during the year. Because these are difficult to grade, neatness is expected. Neatness means paper neatly trimmed on the left side if it has been torn, multiple pages stapled and paper written on only one side. You do not have a right to complain about slowness in grading if you do not turn in a paper that can be graded rapidly. Grades are final unless a legitimate mistake in grading is found. Do not tell me that you need a C for this course! I know! If you get a C- or lower grade, it is because your work deserved a low grade. If you are worried about your grade, the time to do extra credit is when you are given an assignment with an extra credit section, not after the final exam.

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COURSE OUTLINE: Berenson et. al. references are all to the 10 th edition. References to the 3rd edition of D&C are in parentheses.

TOPIC AND CHAPTER WEEKS BEGINNING

A. Introduction-Uses of Statistics JAN 14 Berenson et. al. Ch. 1, 7.4 D and C Ch. 1

B. Sources and Types of Data JAN 21 Berenson et.al. Appendices A, B and C D and C pp. (399-408) 419-429

C. Presentation of Data Berenson et. al. Ch. 2 Minitab Ch. 1,2,3

D. Frequencies and Populations D and C Ch. 2

E. Sampling, Descriptive Statistics JAN 28 D and C pp. (227-229, 239-241) 251-254, 263-267

F. Measures of Central Tendency Berenson et. al. Ch. 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.6

G. Measures of Dispersion and Asymmetry Berenson et. al. Ch. 3.3 through 3.6.

H. Probability D and C CH 3,4,5 FEB 4 Berenson et. al. Ch. 4

I. Permutations and Combinations FEB 11 Berenson et. al. Ch. 4.4 D and C pp. (74-84) 81-96

J. Random Variables FEB 18 Berenson Ch. 5.1 D and C Ch. 6

K. Two Random Variables FEB 25 ‘Formulas for Functions of Random Variables’ Berenson et. al. Ch. 3.5, 5.1, 5.2 D and C Ch. 9

L. Discrete Distributions MAR 3 Berenson et. al. Ch. 5.3-5.6 MAR 17 (5.6 is on CD-ROM) D and C Ch. 7 D and C pp. (230-231) 254-255

M. Continuous Distributions MAR 24 Berenson et. al. Ch. 6 MAR 31 D and C Ch. 8

N. Statistical Sampling APR 7 Berenson et. al. Ch. 7 (7.6 is on CD-ROM) D and C Ch. 8

O. Parameter Estimates APR 14 Berenson et. al. Ch. 8 (8.7 on CD-ROM) APR 21 D and C Ch. 10, 12 APR 28

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Economics 251, QBA I Roger Even Bove Spring 2008

I, ______, have read the syllabus and fully understand the academic dishonesty policy as described herein and by the University. As defined in the 2007 Undergraduate Catalog of West Chester University, academic dishonesty includes the following: plagiarism, fabrication, cheating, academic misconduct, facilitating academic dishonesty, and breach of standards of professional ethics.

The University defines plagiarism as follows: “Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else’s words, ideas, or data as one’s own work. When a student submits work for credit that includes the words, ideas, or data of others, the source of that information must be acknowledged through complete, accurate, and specific references and, if verbatim statements are included, through quotation marks as well… Plagiarism covers unpublished as well as published sources.” (West Chester University Undergraduate Catalog, 2007)

I understand that the penalty for engaging in academic dishonesty and/or plagiarism may be expulsion from the business program and/or University. I further understand that it is my responsibility to make sure I understand how to correctly document the words and ideas of others. Ignorance is not a legitimate defense for plagiarism.

It is our belief that honesty is the foundation of moral and ethical behavior. Individuals who lead an honest life enhance the lives of themselves, their families, and their neighbors. By maintaining one’s integrity, one gains the respect of others which is its own reward.

______Print your name

______Signature, date