Business Math

I can't decide if this class is easy or hard! The concepts weren't covered in either of my algebra classes, but they're so closely tied to REAL BUSINESS SITUATIONS that they seem refreshingly ordinary and not so much foreign language-y. Basic probability and conditional probability actually make sense - at least so far. And I know enough Microsoft Excel that the DCOUNT stuff was almost simple.

Tomorrow's our first quiz so I guess I'll find out then whether or not I've grasped the essentials.

The only hard part is having two focuses. We need to learn the math plus create a PowerPoint presentation on stuff we won't learn until later this week! We are assigned to groups of 6 and have just a week to put together something cohesive to present next Tuesday.

Some poor fictional soul has defaulted on his $7,300,000 business loan and we (as banking officers) need to decide whether to foreclose now or give him more time. Foreclosure will mean the bank is settling for a nominal sum and will never recoup its total investment. More time means he either eventually pays back the entire loan (best case) or goes bankrupt and the bank receives nothing. Data from over 8,000 similar bank customers will give us the probability ratios and we'll learn how to plug in the known factors to assess the value of each scenario. So we basically know what we're shooting for, but we won't really know how to get there until two days before the presentation!

That's the way it is with accelerated courses. Things overlap and you have a persistent feeling you'll never catch up.

But there's no "real" homework to turn in, no textbook to speak of, and we'll be done in five weeks time. Dare I say it? It's almost FUN!