California State Jobs Data Interpretation and Analysis Questions and Answers

Question 1

The table below shows the number of public records requests received by four state departments over a three-year period.

| Department        | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|-------------------|--------|--------|--------|
| Health Services   | 500    | 550    | 650    |
| Transportation    | 300    | 310    | 360    |
| Parks & Rec       | 150    | 200    | 225    |
| Justice           | 400    | 420    | 440    |

Based on the table, which department experienced the largest PERCENTAGE increase in requests between Year 1 and Year 3?

Accepted Answer

Parks & Rec

Answer

To find the percentage increase, use the formula: ((Year 3 Value - Year 1 Value) / Year 1 Value) * 100.
- Health Services: ((650 - 500) / 500) * 100 = 30%
- Transportation: ((360 - 300) / 300) * 100 = 20%
- Parks & Rec: ((225 - 150) / 150) * 100 = 50%
- Justice: ((440 - 400) / 400) * 100 = 10%
The largest percentage increase was in the Parks & Rec department.

Question 2

A state agency's IT department tracked the sources of help desk tickets for a month, as shown in the pie chart below. The total number of tickets was 800.

(Image of a pie chart with the following distribution: Email: 55%, Phone Call: 25%, Walk-in: 15%, Other: 5%)

How many more tickets were submitted via Email than by Phone Call and Walk-in combined?

Accepted Answer

80 tickets

Answer

First, calculate the number of tickets for each category. Email tickets: 55% of 800 = 0.55 * 800 = 440. Phone Call tickets: 25% of 800 = 0.25 * 800 = 200. Walk-in tickets: 15% of 800 = 0.15 * 800 = 120. Next, find the combined total of Phone and Walk-in tickets: 200 + 120 = 320. Finally, find the difference between Email tickets and the combined total: 440 - 320 = 120. A faster way is to use percentages: 55% (Email) - (25% + 15%) (Phone + Walk-in) = 55% - 40% = 15%. Then, 15% of 800 = 0.15 * 800 = 120.

Question 3

The line graph below shows the number of applications processed by a state agency each month over a six-month period.

(Image of a line graph with points: Jan: 400, Feb: 450, Mar: 425, Apr: 550, May: 575, Jun: 500)

During which one-month period did the number of applications show the greatest absolute increase?

Accepted Answer

March to April

Answer

To find the absolute increase, calculate the difference between consecutive months:
- Jan to Feb: 450 - 400 = 50
- Feb to Mar: 425 - 450 = -25 (a decrease)
- Mar to Apr: 550 - 425 = 125
- Apr to May: 575 - 550 = 25
- May to Jun: 500 - 575 = -75 (a decrease)
The greatest absolute increase was 125 applications, which occurred from March to April.

Question 4

A manager must schedule a mandatory training for 180 employees. Option A involves using an in-house trainer who can teach 20 employees per session, with each session costing the department $250. Option B is to hire an external vendor who charges a flat fee of $2,000 to train all 180 employees in a single day. Based solely on cost, which of the following is the most accurate conclusion?

Accepted Answer

Option A is more expensive than Option B.

Answer

First, calculate the total cost for Option A. The number of sessions needed is 180 employees / 20 employees per session = 9 sessions. The total cost for Option A is 9 sessions * $250 per session = $2,250. Option B has a flat cost of $2,000. Comparing the two, Option A ($2,250) is more expensive than Option B ($2,000).

Question 5

A quarterly performance report for a state agency includes the following statement: 'The division's goal was to reduce average call response time to under 120 seconds. This quarter, 8,000 calls were received. 75% of these calls were answered in under 120 seconds, and the average response time for all calls was 124 seconds.' Based on this data, which statement is correct?

Accepted Answer

The division failed to meet its stated goal.

Answer

The stated goal was to reduce the 'average call response time to under 120 seconds'. The report explicitly states that the 'average response time for all calls was 124 seconds'. Since 124 seconds is not under 120 seconds, the division failed to meet its goal. The percentage of calls answered within the timeframe is a different metric and does not determine success for this specific goal.

California State Jobs Exam Practice Test

California State Jobs Exam Practice Test

California State Jobs Data Interpretation and Analysis Questions and Answers