Unit 0: Course and Project Vocabulary

Business case

A real or fictional business scenario used to analyze a decision, problem, or tradeoff. The course teaches through cases, and the exam's multiple-choice sets work the same way: you read a situation and reason about it rather than recalling a fact.

Quantitative data

Numerical information, such as sales figures, prices, costs, or the percentage of survey respondents who chose an option. The exam regularly asks you to read quantitative data accurately and, when needed, calculate with it. (A basic four-function calculator is permitted, so the arithmetic stays simple.)

Qualitative data

Descriptive, non-numerical information, such as interview comments, customer opinions, or observations. Qualitative and quantitative data answer different questions, and strong answers use each for what it is good at.

Decision-making criteria

The standards used to judge competing options, such as cost, risk, fit with goals, or customer impact. Naming the criteria before choosing is the habit that separates a strong recommendation from a guess, and it is what the Business Decision free-response question rewards.

Recommendation

A supported course of action that names the criteria, weighs the options against them, and commits to one. A recommendation goes beyond an opinion. It is a conclusion backed by evidence from the scenario.