Ohio Civil Service Data Interpretation and Analysis Questions and Answers

Question 1

Refer to the table below, which shows the number of service requests handled by three city departments over a four-month period.

| Department      | May | June | July | August |
|-----------------|-----|------|------|--------|
| Public Works    | 210 | 195  | 225  | 240    |
| Parks & Rec     | 150 | 165  | 185  | 170    |
| Water Dept.     | 280 | 310  | 300  | 320    |

Which of the following statements is best supported by the data in the table?

Accepted Answer

The Public Works department handled the fewest requests in June.

Answer

By examining the 'Public Works' row, the number of requests were 210, 195, 225, and 240. The lowest value in this set is 195, which occurred in June. The other statements are incorrect: The Water Dept. and Public Works both handled more requests in August than May; Total requests were highest in August (730); Parks & Rec requests decreased from July to August.

Question 2

A state agency's travel budget of $450,000 is allocated as shown in the pie chart below.

(Pie Chart Description: Airfare 40%, Lodging 30%, Meals 15%, Ground Transport 10%, Other 5%)

How much money is allocated for Lodging and Ground Transport combined?

Accepted Answer

$225,000

Answer

First, add the percentages for Lodging (30%) and Ground Transport (10%), which equals 40%. Then, calculate 40% of the total budget: 0.40 * $450,000 = $180,000. Wait, let me re-calculate. Lodging is 30% of $450,000 = $135,000. Ground Transport is 10% of $450,000 = $45,000. Combined: $135,000 + $45,000 = $180,000. Let me check the other options. Ah, I see a potential error in my initial calculation. Lodging (30%) + Ground Transport (10%) = 40%. 0.40 * 450,000 = 180,000. Let me try another combination. Lodging (30%) + Meals (15%) = 45%. 0.45 * 450,000 = $202,500. Let's recalculate the correct answer. Lodging is $135,000. Ground Transport is $45,000. Total is $180,000. Let's create a new answer set. A) $180,000 (Correct). B) $225,000 (Incorrect - this is 50%). C) $135,000 (Incorrect - this is only Lodging). D) $45,000 (Incorrect - this is only Ground Transport). Let's shuffle. A) $225,000 B) $180,000 C) $135,000 D) $45,000. Correct is B. The explanation is: Lodging is 30% and Ground Transport is 10%, for a combined 40%. 40% of the $450,000 budget is calculated as 0.40 * 450,000 = $180,000.

Question 3

The bar chart below shows the number of permits issued by a city department each quarter.

(Bar Chart Description: Q1: 400, Q2: 550, Q3: 500, Q4: 650)

What was the approximate percentage increase in permits issued from Q1 to Q4?

Accepted Answer

63%

Answer

The formula for percentage increase is ((New Value - Original Value) / Original Value) * 100. The increase in permits is 650 (Q4) - 400 (Q1) = 250. The percentage increase is (250 / 400) * 100 = 0.625 * 100 = 62.5%. The closest answer is 63%.

Question 4

A supervisor is reviewing the number of daily service calls taken by six employees. The numbers are: 24, 29, 21, 35, 24, and 25. What is the median number of service calls?

Accepted Answer

24.5

Answer

To find the median, first arrange the numbers in ascending order: 21, 24, 24, 25, 29, 35. Since there is an even number of values, the median is the average of the two middle numbers (24 and 25). (24 + 25) / 2 = 24.5.

Question 5

The line graph below shows the monthly overtime hours for a department. During which period did the department experience the sharpest decline in overtime hours?

(Line Graph Description: Jan: 60, Feb: 75, Mar: 90, Apr: 50, May: 55, Jun: 40)

Accepted Answer

March to April

Answer

To find the sharpest decline, calculate the difference between consecutive months: Feb to Mar (+15), Mar to Apr (-40), May to Jun (-15), Jan to Feb (+15). The largest decrease is 40 hours, which occurred between March and April.

Ohio Civil Service Exam Practice Test

Ohio Civil Service Exam Practice Test

Ohio Civil Service Data Interpretation and Analysis Questions and Answers