Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
MIDTERM EXAM SAMPLE
Course: Introduction to Statistics
Duration: 60 minutes
(No materials allowed)
Name: Student ID:
Section Max Points Score
Part I: Multiple Choice 30
Part II: Question 1 35
Part II: Question 2 20
Part II: Question 3 15
Total 100
PART I: MULTIPLE CHOICE (30 Points - 5 points/question)
Circle the letter of the best answer.
1. A parameter is a descriptive measure computed from a:
A. Sample
B. Population
C. Both a sample and a population
D. A subset of a sample
2. A company’s credit rating (e.g., AAA, AA+, B-) is an example of what type of
data and corresponding measurement scale?
A. Quantitative, Ratio scale
B. Categorical, Ordinal scale
C. Quantitative, Interval scale
D. Categorical, Nominal scale
3. For a right-skewed distribution, which of the following relationships is typically
true?
A. Mean = Median
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
B. Mean < Median
C. Mean > Median
D. Mode > Mean
4. Which of the following measures is least affected by outliers?
A. Range
B. Mean
C. Standard Deviation
D. Median
5. A data point with a Z-score of -2.0 means that the data point is:
A. 2 units greater than the mean.
B. 2 standard deviations below the mean.
C. 2 standard deviations above the mean.
D. an outlier.
6. Which of the following is most appropriate for visualizing the relationship between
two quantitative variables?
A. Bar Chart
B. Pie Chart
C. Scatter Diagram
D. Stem-and-Leaf Display
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
PART II: FREE RESPONSE (70 Points)
1. Descriptive Statistical Analysis (35 points)
The time (in minutes) to complete a race lap for 10 F1 drivers was recorded as
follows:
82, 85, 80, 81, 95, 84, 88, 85, 83, 87
a.) (10 points) Calculate the mean, median, and mode for this dataset.
b.) (15 points) Calculate the range, sample variance, and sample standard devia-
tion.
c.) (10 points) Calculate the first quartile (Q1) and third quartile (Q3). Then,
determine if there are any outliers using the 1.5*IQR rule.
2. Data Organization and Visualization (20 points)
The final exam scores of 15 students are given below:
65, 92, 77, 81, 74, 88, 79, 95, 68, 84, 77, 91, 72, 86, 75
a.) (10 points) Construct a Stem-and-Leaf Display for this dataset.
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
b.) (10 points) Based on the Stem-and-Leaf display, briefly comment on the shape
of the data distribution (e.g., symmetric, left-skewed, or right-skewed).
3. Advanced Analysis and Interpretation (15 points - Advanced Question)
An investor is considering two stocks, A and B. Over the past five years, the average
annual return for both stocks was 15%. However, the standard deviation of returns
for Stock A was 5%, while for Stock B it was 12%.
a.) (5 points) Based on the standard deviation, which stock is riskier (more
volatile)? Explain.
b.) (10 points) Suppose a third stock, C, has an average return of 8% and a
standard deviation of 4%. Using the Coefficient of Variation (CV), compare
the relative risk of Stock A and Stock C. Which stock is relatively riskier?
Explain why using the CV is more appropriate than just the standard deviation
in this case.
— END OF EXAM —
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
— ANSWER KEY —
PART I: MULTIPLE CHOICE (30 Points)
1. B. Population
2. B. Categorical, Ordinal scale
3. C. Mean ¿ Median
4. D. Median
5. B. 2 standard deviations below the mean.
6. C. Scatter Diagram
PART II: FREE RESPONSE (70 Points)
1. Descriptive Statistical Analysis (35 points)
Original Data: 82, 85, 80, 81, 95, 84, 88, 85, 83, 87
Sorted Data (n = 10): 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 85, 87, 88, 95
a.) (10 points)
P
• Mean: x̄ = nxi = 850
10
= 85
• Median: Since n = 10 (even), the median is the average of the 5th and
6th values. Median = 84+85
2
= 84.5
• Mode: The value that appears most frequently is 85.
b.) (15 points)
• Range: Max - Min = 95 − 80 = 15
• Sample Variance (s2 ):
X
(xi − x̄)2 = (80 − 85)2 + (81 − 85)2 + · · · + (95 − 85)2
= 25 + 16 + 9 + 4 + 1 + 0 + 0 + 4 + 9 + 100 = 168
(xi − x̄)2
P
2 168 168
s = = = ≈ 18.67
n−1 10 − 1 9
√ √
• Sample Standard Deviation (s): s = s2 = 18.67 ≈ 4.32
c.) (10 points)
• First Quartile (Q1): Location L25 = 100 25
(10 + 1) = 2.75. Q1 is the
value 75% of the way between the 2nd value (81) and the 3rd value (82).
Q1 = 81 + 0.75 × (82 − 81) = 81.75
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
• Third Quartile (Q3): Location L75 = 100 75
(10 + 1) = 8.25. Q3 is the
value 25% of the way between the 8th value (87) and the 9th value (88).
Q3 = 87 + 0.25 × (88 − 87) = 87.25
• Outlier Detection:
IQR = Q3 − Q1 = 87.25 − 81.75 = 5.5
Lower Limit = Q1 − 1.5 × IQR = 81.75 − 1.5 × 5.5 = 73.5
Upper Limit = Q3 + 1.5 × IQR = 87.25 + 1.5 × 5.5 = 95.5
Since all data points fall within the range [73.5, 95.5], there are no out-
liers.
2. Data Organization and Visualization (20 points)
Data: 65, 92, 77, 81, 74, 88, 79, 95, 68, 84, 77, 91, 72, 86, 75
a.) (10 points) Stem-and-Leaf Display:
Stem | Leaf
-----|----------------
6 | 5 8
7 | 2 4 5 7 7 9
8 | 1 4 6 8
9 | 1 2 5
b.) (10 points) Comment on Distribution Shape:
The distribution appears to be roughly symmetric or slightly left-skewed.
The data clusters in the 70s and 80s, with tails of similar length on both sides,
although the concentration of values is slightly higher on the upper end (80s
and 90s).
3. Advanced Analysis and Interpretation (15 points)
a.) (5 points) Riskier Stock:
Stock B is riskier. A higher standard deviation (12% for B vs. 5% for A)
indicates that its returns are more spread out from the average return. This
greater volatility is synonymous with higher risk in finance.
b.) (10 points) Relative Risk Comparison:
• Coefficient of Variation (CV) Calculation:
sA 5%
CVA = × 100% = × 100% ≈ 33.33%
x̄A 15%
sC 4%
CVC = × 100% = × 100% = 50.00%
x̄C 8%
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Introduction to Statistics Midterm Exam Sample
• Conclusion and Explanation: Since CVC > CVA , Stock C is rel-
atively riskier. The Coefficient of Variation is more appropriate here
because the two stocks have different average returns (15% vs. 8%). The
CV measures risk (standard deviation) per unit of return, providing a stan-
dardized, relative measure of risk. It allows for a fair comparison between
investments with different expected returns, whereas a direct comparison
of standard deviations can be misleading in this scenario.
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