ETC1000 Business and Economics Statistics
Difficulty:
Year Completed: Semester 1, 2026
Prerequisite: N/A
Mean SETU Score: 86/100
Exemption: N/A
Subject Content:
Lecture(s) and Tutorial(s):
Textbook(s):
Assessments:
The unit introduced students on how to interpret business and economic data through organisation into tables, charts, before enabling them to use descriptive statistics techniques through excel and then R code. Afterwards, through analysis of relationships between various economics variables, students were expected to apply introductory level ideas of probability theory to business and economic decision making.
1 x 2 hour lecture
1 x 1.5 hour tutorial
1 x 1 hour workshop
No specific textbook required. Comprehensive lecture notes and additional resources were provided on Moodle to support learning.
Tutorial Quizzes and Participation (20%): Weekly group or individual quizzes conducted during tutorials.
Two In-Class Tests (20% total): Closed-book online tests during tutorials covering Excel (Test 1) and R programming (Test 2).
Group Project and Video Presentation (20%): Group assignment involving data collection, analysis, and interpretation, culminating in a recorded presentation.
Final Exam (40%): Open-book exam focusing on interpretation of Excel and R output screenshots; no calculator allowed.
Comments
This unit introduces students to key statistical methods and software tools (Excel and R) essential for data analysis in business and economics. The unit involves an increasing amount of application throughout the semester, resulting in an increasing workload in ensuring adequate understanding.
Lectures were quite engaging, they were also largely theory based and recordings were always posted before the end of the day. While attendance is not compulsory, the exposure to the application side of the unit they provide is certainly beneficial to students hoping to achieve a high mark.
Tutorials had required attendance due to the in class quizzes which were taken each week in class. Each tutorial followed a general structure, with the relevant data and questions changed to meet the topic criteria of current. Preparation is essential for tutorials, students who have not prepared will likely not be able to complete a majority of the work provided.
Practice questions were provided before all assessments, providing both exposure to the type of examination and helping students build their knowledge of the topic. Marking of these was mostly done by the computer, resulting in not much leniency.
The final exam was based on all weeks of content, with a particularly heavy focus on knowledge of R. The difficulty of the exam was arguably less than those of the two in class exams (also based on all prior content), and quite similar to the practice exam. All exams are fair and students who prepare should have no difficulty excelling in them.
Success in ETC1000 requires a strong focus on interpreting statistical results and writing clear, concise responses. Regular practice questions are essential for applying concepts and preparing for assessments. Students should also keep up with theoretical content and ensure consistent study patterns as the unit becomes increasingly challenging throughout the semester.
General Overview:
Lectures:
Tutorials:
Assessments/Other Assessments
Exams
Concluding Remarks