Course: BUS 215.01 – Introduction to Business Statistics
Semester: Spring 2014
Instructor: M. Shane Higuera, Ed.D.
Instructor Contact Information: michael.higuera@stonybrook.edu
(631) 807-7904
Meeting Time: Fridays 9:00am – 12:00pm
Location: 104 Harriman Hall
Course Description:
The application of current statistical methods to problems in the modern business environment.
Topics include probability, random variables, sampling techniques, confidence intervals,
hypothesis testing, and regression. Students analyze real data sets using standard statistical
software, interpret the output, and write extensively about the results.
Prerequisite: BUS Maj/Min, CME Major, or ISE Major
Advisory Prerequisite: BUS 110, 111, 112 or 115, or MAT 122. Advisory Prerequisite for BUS
or ISE Major: BUS 210
3 credits
Course Overview:
This course is an introduction to the concepts, methods, and applications of statistics in business.
In your career, you will often face situations in which a clear understanding of statistical thinking
and methodology will be essential. I have designed the course to:
1. Introduce the basic concepts and methods of statistics,
2. Demonstrate the applications of statistics in business decision making,
3. Enable you to perform statistical analyses using appropriate software, and
4. Help you to become a wise consumer of statistical analyses performed by others.
If you are interested in finance, you know that investment strategy is all about return and risk.
How will a portfolio fare in an uncertain world? Why do well-informed investors include funds
that perform well in certain circumstances and others that perform poorly under the same
circumstances? How can you measure the volatility of a stock relative to the market?
Understanding uncertainty, expected value, variance, regression analysis, and correlation will
provide you with a strong competitive advantage over those who do not.
If you are interested in marketing, you know that successful marketers have a good
understanding of the markets they target. How do they obtain such knowledge? How do
marketers design surveys and other data collection devices that will give them a clear and
unbiased look at their markets? What traps must they avoid so as not to make serious mistakes?
How many people must they survey, and how must they select those people, to obtain the
precision that they need without incurring undue cost? Understanding the principles of random
sampling, types of nonrandom errors that can destroy a data set, and some simple ways to judge
the size of the sampling error present in any data set will provide you with a strong competitive
advantage over those who do not.
If you are interested in operations, you know that keeping a business running smoothly requires
that you keep in touch with current operations. How do you know when a production line is
producing too many defective items and needs adjustment, repair, or recalibration? How can you
tell which suppliers are the most dependable links in your supply chain? What inventory levels
should you maintain to keep customers happy and costs low? Will a proposed new computer
information system speed customer orders or will it simply be a large expense with little
significant impact on the company’s bottom line? Understanding the principles of sampling
distributions, estimation, confidence intervals, and hypothesis testing, will provide you with a
strong competitive advantage over those who do not.
Whether you are interested in human resource management, information systems management,
health care management, or any other business discipline you will need to understand how to
deal with problems like these. Whether you work in energy, transportation, retailing, businessto-business, real estate, or any other industry you will find yourself making decisions in an
uncertain environment in which your ability to analyze data (and understand analyses performed
by others) will be a key to your success. That is why business students need business statistics.
Required Texts & Other Course Materials:
The textbook is Applied Statistics in Business and Economics, fourth edition, Doane and Seward,
McGraw-Hill (2013).
We will use Microsoft Excel and the MegaStat add-in for Excel. Stony Brook students can
receive Microsoft Office Enterprise free. For details, visit
http://it.cc.stonybrook.edu/student_guide/software. MegaStat is available for free download at
http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0010126585/student_view0/megastat.html
Student Learning Outcomes
College of Business Program Learning Outcomes:
Critical Thinking – Graduates will be able to identify and evaluate the major elements of a
business problem and summarize their findings. This outcome will be assessed through exams.
Course Specific Learning Outcomes
When you have successfully completed this course, you will:
Assessment
Activities
Recognize the many types and sources of business-related data
Exams
Recognize the many acceptable and unacceptable ways to collect data
Exams
Summarize data through the use of summary statistics and statistical
charts to support business decision making
ALEKS, Exams
Understand the major importance of variability in business decision
making
ALEKS, Exams
Understand and be able to use basic probability concepts and probability
distributions to solve problems related to business
ALEKS, Exams
Understand the basic concepts of sampling and the nature of sampling
distributions
ALEKS & Exams
Compute and interpret confidence intervals for percentages and means
and apply them in business decision making contexts
ALEKS, Exams
Compute and interpret one- and two-sample hypothesis tests for
percentages and means and apply them in business decision making
contexts
ALEKS, Exams
Construct and interpret univariate and multivariate regression models
and apply them in business decision making contexts
ALEKS, Exams
Class Schedule
Class Day
1
Fri
2
Fri
3
Fri
4
Fri
5
Fri
6
Fri
7
Fri
8
Fri
9
Fri
10
Fri
11
Fri
12
Fri
13
Fri
14
Fri
15
Fri
16
Wed
Date
Chapter Topics
01/31/14
1&2
Introduction to the Course; Data Collection
02/07/14
3
Describing Data Visually
02/14/14
4
Descriptive Statistics
02/21/14
5
Probability
02/28/14
Midterm Exam 1
03/07/14
6
Exam Review; Discrete Distributions
03/14/14
7
Continuous Distributions
03/21/14
Spring Break – No Class
03/28/14
8
Sampling Distributions and Estimation
04/04/14
8
Sampling Distributions and Estimation
04/11/14
Midterm Exam 2
04/18/14
9
Exam Review; One-Sample Hypothesis Tests
04/25/14
10
Two-Sample Hypothesis Tests
05/02/14
12
Bivariate Regression
05/09/14
13
Multiple Regression
05/14/14
Final Exam: 8:30pm – 11:00pm
Course Requirements & Grading Information:
Exams –
The exams will be given on the dates shown in the Class Schedule. I will not give make-up
exams without (a) advanced written notice that you will miss the exam, and (b) written
documentation explaining the reason for your absence. I will judge the adequacy of the reason
and the appropriateness of a make-up exam. I reserve the right to format the make-up exam as
an oral exam. You must bring the following with you to all three exams:
 Notes, both sides of one 8½” x 11” sheet of paper in your own handwriting (no
photocopies),
 Non-communicating calculator (not your cell phone), and
 Several pencils or pens
There will be no partial credit awarded on any exam – midterms or final. For each midterm
exam, you will receive your graded exam during the class session following the exam. You will
have 2+ days (11:00pm on Sunday) to submit your corrections to each question on the midterm
for which no credit was awarded. For each question, if the correction is perfect, 50% credit will
be awarded. For example, if the original score for the midterm exam was a 70 and each of the
corrections was timely and perfect, 15 additional points would be awarded, thereby increasing
the midterm grade to an 85. The corrections must be submitted by e-mail in the format described
in class.
The exams will cover the following material.
Midterm Exam 1: Chapters 1 – 5
Midterm Exam 2: Chapters 6 – 8
Final Exam: Chapters 9, 10, 12, and 13
ALEKS –
ALEKS is an online system designed to assess your state of knowledge in business statistics and
guide you through an individualized learning experience. To register online:
1. Go to http://www.aleks.com
2. On the upper left, click on NEW USER? SIGN UP NOW!
3. In the box for Using ALEKS with a Class? enter the course code: ARDEA-4TH4Q.
Codes are case sensitive. Click Continue.
4. Under Confirm Enrollment Information, click Continue.
If you need to purchase an ALEKS access code, perform steps 5 through 9. If you already have
your access code, then skip to step 8.
5. Click on the link for Purchase an access code online.
6. Under the Business heading, select ALEKS for Business Statistics (one semester).
7. Select your state and school and continue to finalize your purchase.
8. Go back to your ALEKS registration page and enter your access code.
9. Checkmark the User Agreement. You have the option to change your password. Then,
complete your registration.
If the computer you are working on does not already have the ALEKS plug-in installed, then the
plug-in will download automatically when you enter ALEKS. You will need to do this only
once on that computer. However, if you do not have administrator rights for that computer,
then click on “Downloads” in the upper right corner of the ALEKS home page, click on the
“How do I use the ALEKS "streaming" plug-in?” link, and follow the directions. You will
need to do that each time you log on to ALEKS using that computer since the streaming plug-in
works only for the current session.
Once registered, you will be guided through a brief, interactive tutorial to help you become
familiar with the ALEKS software. After the tutorial, you will take an initial placement
assessment. This creates a personalized, interactive learning path based on your current
knowledge of the material. Try to answer each question. If you do not know the answer, simply
click “I don’t know.” You will study these items later in the Learning Mode. The assessment
might take 1 hour (or more, if you are already familiar with the topics) so please be patient.
ALEKS requires an accurate assessment of your knowledge to help you learn efficiently. You
must work alone on the ALEKS assessment and in the ALEKS Learning Mode.
Once your placement assessment is complete, the “My Pie” report will illustrate how much of
each topic area you know and what you are ready to learn. Select topics to work on directly from
the pie chart. ALEKS gives you immediate feedback on your answers. If you are unable to
solve a problem, click on “Explain.” Once you see the solution, you can rework a similar
problem that contains different variables.
Technical Support: support@aleks.com or call 1-714-245-7191 ext. 201.
You should work on ALEKS topics before we discuss them in class. This will enhance your
learning of those topics and will help you to prepare for exams. The percentage of learning
topics that you master before each exam will be a portion of your final grade. I will measure
these percentages immediately prior to each exam, as shown in Table 4. Specifically:
 If you complete X1 topics before Midterm Exam 1, then your first ALEKS grade will be
(X1/31)*10.
 If you complete X2 topics before Midterm Exam 2 (including any you completed before
Midterm Exam 1), then your second ALEKS grade will be (X2/58)*6.
 Finally, if you complete X3 topics before the Final Exam (including any you completed
before Midterm Exam 1 or Midterm Exam 2), then your final ALEKS grade will be
(X3/82)*6.
Please note that the first two ALEKS grades may be more than 100%. Note also that the
Mathematical Readiness topics in ALEKS are required but do not count toward any of
your ALEKS grades.
ALEX Topics Corresponding to Each Exam
Exam
Slices Of “My Pie”
Midterm Exam 1
Midterm Exam 2
Descriptive; Probability
Distributions; Confidence Intervals topics in
Inference
Remainder of Inference; Regression
Final Exam
Topics
Cumulative
31
27
31
58
24
82
Assignments –
There will be six homework assignments posted in ALEKS. You must work alone on these
assignments. Each assignment will be available for only a limited time and you must complete it
before it is due to earn credit for it. The table below shows the chapter coverage and the due
dates for the homework assignments. Once the due date has passed, you will have no
opportunity to make up the assignment and your grade for that assignment will be zero. The
homework assignments may be attempted an unlimited number of times – only the highest score
will be reported and used to calculate the homework grade.
Homework
Assignment
1
2
3
4
5
6
Title
Chapter
Due Before
11 Pm On
Data Collection and Description
Probability
Probability Distributions
Confidence Intervals
Hypothesis Testing
Regression
1, 2, 3, 4
5
6, 7
8
9, 10
12, 13
Sunday, 02/16/2014
Sunday, 02/23/2014
Sunday, 03/16/2014
Sunday, 04/06/2014
Sunday, 04/27/2014
Sunday, 05/11/2014
Expectations –
Your attendance at and your participation in every class are important! You cannot succeed in
this course if you miss class. When we meet, we will focus on conceptual explanations and
applications, demonstrations, and discussions designed to enhance your learning of the course
material. When you come to class, I expect you to turn off your cell phone and to refrain from
engaging in distracting activities such as sleeping, texting, working on your laptop computer, or
talking to the person next to you. I also expect your complete engagement and active
participation in each class session.
Grading System –
I do not curve grades in this course, meaning that potentially everyone in the class can earn an A.
I use plus and minus moderators in grading. All grades are based on the following matrix.
Course Score
Final Letter Grade
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
D
F
Grading Allocation for the Course –
Item
Points For Final Grade
Midterm Exam 1 Grade
20
Midterm Exam 2 Grade
20
Final Exam Grade
20
ALEKS 1 Grade
10
ALEKS 2 Grade
6
Final ALEKS Grade
6
ALEKS Homework
18
Total Potential Score
100
Office Hours and Teaching Assistants –
My office hours are Mondays and Wednesdays 1:00pm – 2:15pm, and by appointment. You
may make an appointment by e-mail or phone. Information about the teaching assistants (TAs)
is available in the Staff Information section of Blackboard. Each TA holds 6 office hours per
week in the lobby of Harriman Hall.
Blackboard –
You can access class information on-line at http://blackboard.sunysb.edu. If you have used
Stony Brook's Blackboard system previously, your login information (Username and Password)
has not changed. If you have never used Stony Brook's Blackboard system, your initial
password is your SOLAR ID# and your username is the same as your Stony Brook (sparky)
username, which is generally your first initial and the first seven letters of your last name.
If you are having trouble logging into Blackboard, you will need to log into SOLAR to verify
your Net ID username & set your Net ID Security Question and Password. For more
information, visit: http://clientsupport.stonybrook.edu/
If you are a student and continue to have a problem logging into Blackboard, you will need to
bring photo ID to either the Melville Library SINC Site Room S1460 or the Union SINC Site
Room 080 and speak to a Blackboard Administrator from Saturday - Friday from 9 am - 5 pm.
Academic Integrity: Each student must pursue his or her academic goals honestly and be
personally accountable for all submitted work. Representing another person's work as your own
is always wrong. Faculty is required to report any suspected instances of academic dishonesty to
the Academic Judiciary. For more comprehensive information on academic integrity, including
categories of academic dishonesty please refer to the academic judiciary website at
http://www.stonybrook.edu/uaa/academicjudiciary/
Academic Dishonesty:
The College of Business regards any act of academic dishonesty as a major violation punishable
by severe penalties, including dismissal from the University. University policy requires that
instructors and GAs and TAs report all suspected cases of academic dishonesty to the appropriate
Academic Judiciary Committee, which is empowered to take strong action against violators.
Under no circumstances, will the College of Business permit cheating of any kind. Many
activities constitute academic dishonesty. The following list is not inclusive, only suggestive:
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Cheating on exams or assignments by the use of books, electronic devices, notes, or other
aids when these are not permitted, or by copying from another student.
Collusion: two or more students helping one another on an exam or assignment when it is
not permitted.
Ringers: taking an exam for someone else, or permitting someone else to take one's
exam. Submitting the same paper in more than one course without permission of the
instructors.
Plagiarizing: copying someone else's writing or paraphrasing it too closely, even if it
constitutes only some of your written assignment.
Submitting the same paper in more than one course without approval of the instructors.
Falsifying documents or records related to credit, grades, status (e.g., adds and drops,
P/NC grading), or other academic matters.
Altering an exam or paper after it has been graded in order to request a grade change.
Stealing, concealing, destroying, or inappropriately modifying classroom or other
instructional material, such as posted exams, library materials, laboratory supplies, or
computer programs.
Preventing relevant material from being subjected to academic evaluation.
Americans with Disabilities Act:
If you have a physical, psychological, medical, or learning disability that may impact your
course work, please contact Disability Support Services at (631) 632-6748. They will determine
with you what accommodations are necessary and appropriate. All information and
documentation is confidential.
Students who require assistance during emergency evacuation are encouraged to discuss their
needs with their professors and Disability Support Services. For procedures and information go
to the following website: http://www.sunysb.edu/ehs/fire/disabilities.shtml
Critical Incident Management:
Stony Brook University expects students to respect the rights, privileges, and property of other
people. Faculty are required to report to the Office of University Community Standards any
disruptive behavior that interrupts their ability to teach, compromises the safety of the learning
environment, or inhibits students' ability to learn. Faculty in the HSC Schools and the School of
Medicine are required to follow their school-specific procedures. Further information about
most academic matters can be found in the Undergraduate Bulletin, the Undergraduate Class
Schedule, and the Faculty-Employee Handbook.