Course Overview
This course has four components :
Mathematical Modelling, Statistics and probability,Finance , Planning and decision making
The standalone Higher Statistics unit award is now embedded within this course.
An external SQA exam is sat at the end of the course and a project must also be completed.
- Modelling a situation mathematically in a given context
- Defining appropriate units of measure for variables and
checking for consistency
- Evaluating the effects of error and tolerances within
mathematical models
- Evaluating and interpreting the output of mathematical
models
- Analysing mathematical models and suggesting possible
improvements
- Using software
effectively in calculations
- Representing compound projects by activity networks using
activity-on-node representation, for example Programme
Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) charts
- Using systematic methods to find early and late times for
activities, and then identifying critical activities and finding
critical paths
- Using Gantt charts to represent project activities
- Understanding and interpreting risk by calculating the
expected value of costs and benefits of decisions
- Applying expected value to real-life contexts and
understanding this is an important part of decision making
- Constructing tree diagrams and Venn diagrams
- Carrying out basic calculations involving the combination of events, where information may be displayed in tables or graphs
- Constructing and interpreting statistical diagrams
- Interpreting the distribution of data, with particular reference to symmetry, normality, and skewness
- Deriving, understanding, and interpreting sample measures of location and dispersion, including mean and standard deviation, and median and interquartile range
- Interpreting and constructing scatter plots
- Using simple linear regression
- Interpreting the slope and intercept parameters in relation to data
- Using linear models for prediction
- Assessing the accuracy of predictions
- Understanding and interpreting correlations
- Understanding the applicability of Pearson’s
product-moment correlation coefficient
- Exploring trends in data
- Formulating research questions
- Interpreting and reporting the results of a hypothesis test
- Generating, understanding, and interpreting confidence
intervals
- Performing simple analysis using t-tests and paired t-tests
- Using z-tests for two proportions
- Understanding how errors can arise in statistical testing,
including confounding variables
- Interpreting and relating results of a hypothesis test to the
original research question
- Understanding the concept of capital and interest and performing calculations involving effective rates of interest
- Calculating the present value and accumulated value of a single payment and a series of payments
- Understanding the purpose of credit cards and loans
- Solving and analysing problems relating to credit cards and loans
- Analysing the risks associated with credit cards and loans
- Understanding the purpose of savings products
- Solving and analysing problems relating to savings
products
- Analysing the risks associated with savings products
- Understanding the purpose of insurance products
- Analysing the risks associated with insurance products
- Understanding monetary concepts, applying
these in financial calculations, and interpreting their
impacts
- Analysing and interpreting the risks associated with
financial planning strategies