Module 8: Final Project and Final Exam
Review:
- Module 7
Presentation:
- Video Lecture
- Please ignore references to the “Data Science for Business” assignment. It’s not required this term.
Final Project:
- Advanced Retirement Simulation
- Expand and refine your spreadsheet simulation of annual stock+bond returns to generate estimates of retirement savings.
- Simulation Features:
- 40-year time horizon
- Simulation count, n=100
- Ability to set/modify simulation parameters by changing cell values (not by editing formula)
- initial balance
- annual contribution
- stock/bond % allocation
- financial target, e.g., $1,000,000
- Functional start button to launch automation of simulation
- Display at end of simulation
- probability (%) of reaching financial target
- distribution of end balances on a histogram
- calculation of Max, Min, Mean, Median and Standard Deviation of end balances
- Video Presentation:
- Each student will create a video in one of 2 formats
- Zoom style screen recording (like my lectures), or
- Homemade video (use your phone)
- Provide a tour of your simulation spreadsheet
- Demonstrate each of the “features” listed above
- Explain what you learned about both simulation methods and retirement savings
- Post your video on YouTube or upload and share on Google Drive (or use your preferred video platform).
- Send me a link to your video via email or Bb.
- Each student will create a video in one of 2 formats
Final Exam:
- You must first complete the Final Project!
- The sooner you complete the project, the sooner you’ll be able to begin your Final Exam.
- Once I have received your Final Project and verified completion, I will send a confirmation email.
- In the same confirmation email, or shortly thereafter, I will send materials and instructions for the Final Exam.
- Exam materials will be unique for every student.
- This creates a lot of extra work for me but it’s the best way I know to prevent “sharing” of answers.
- If your exam submission doesn’t match the unique exam materials provided, you may receive a 0 on the final.
- You should also note that I may be able to trace plagiarized work back to the original author. So, if you share your work with another student you may also receive a 0 on the final.
- Whoa, dude. Pretty harsh. How can I save myself from this horrible fate? Easy: do your own work and don’t share it!