ST107 Half Unit
Quantitative Methods (Statistics)
This information is for the 2020/21 session.
Teacher responsible
Dr James Abdey COL.5.10
Availability
This course is compulsory on the BSc in Economic History with Economics, BSc in Economics and Economic History, BSc in Environmental Policy with Economics, BSc in Geography with Economics, BSc in International Social and Public Policy and Economics, BSc in Management and BSc in Social Policy and Economics. This course is available on the BSc in Accounting and Finance, BSc in Government and Economics, BSc in Philosophy and Economics, BSc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, BSc in Politics and Economics and Diploma in Accounting and Finance. This course is available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit and to General Course students.
This course cannot be taken with ST102 Elementary Statistical Theory or ST108 Statistical Methods for the Social Sciences.
Pre-requisites
A-level Mathematics.
Course content
The elementary statistical tools necessary for further study in management and economics with an emphasis on the applicability of the methods to management and economic problems. Topics covered are data visualisation and descriptive statistics, probability theory, discrete probability distributions, continuous probability distributions, sampling distributions of statistics, point estimation, interval estimation, hypothesis testing, contingency tables and the chi-squared test, correlation and linear regression.
Teaching
This course will be delivered through a combination of classes, lectures and workshops totalling a minimum of 45 hours across Lent Term. This year, some or all of this teaching may be delivered through a combination of virtual classes and flipped-lectures/workshops delivered as short online videos. This course does not include a reading week in Week 6 of Lent Term.
Formative coursework
Weekly exercises will be set and students are expected to submit solutions to their class teacher each week for feedback.
Indicative reading
All course materials are made available via Moodle, including notes to accompany the lectures, but this can be supplemented with additional background reading. The recommended supplementary text is:
Newbold, P., W.L. Carlson and B.M. Thorne (2019) Statistics for Business and Economics. (9th edition), Pearson (earlier editions are also fine).
Assessment
Exam (100%, duration: 2 hours) in the summer exam period.
Student performance results
(2017/18 - 2019/20 combined)
| Classification | % of students |
|---|---|
| First | 47.7 |
| 2:1 | 23.1 |
| 2:2 | 11.7 |
| Third | 8.8 |
| Fail | 8.6 |
Important information in response to COVID-19
Please note that during 2020/21 academic year some variation to teaching and learning activities may be required to respond to changes in public health advice and/or to account for the situation of students in attendance on campus and those studying online during the early part of the academic year. For assessment, this may involve changes to mode of delivery and/or the format or weighting of assessments. Changes will only be made if required and students will be notified about any changes to teaching or assessment plans at the earliest opportunity.
Key facts
Department: Statistics
Total students 2019/20: 435
Average class size 2019/20: 23
Capped 2019/20: No
Value: Half Unit
Personal development skills
- Problem solving
- Application of numeracy skills
