The table shows the numbers (in thousands) of earned degrees by level in two different fields, conferred in the United States in a recent year. (Source: U.S. National Center for Education Statistics)
A person who earned a degree in the year is randomly selected. Find the probability that the degree earned by the person is a
a. bachelor's degree.

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the problem. We are tasked with finding the probability that a randomly selected degree earned in the given year is a bachelor's degree. Probability is calculated as the ratio of the number of favorable outcomes to the total number of outcomes.
2. Step 2: Identify the total number of degrees earned. From the table, the total number of degrees earned across all levels and fields is 565.4 thousand.
3. Step 3: Identify the number of bachelor's degrees earned. From the table, the total number of bachelor's degrees earned across all fields is 395.8 thousand.
4. Step 4: Write the formula for probability. The probability of earning a bachelor's degree is given by: $\frac{395.8}{565.4}$
5. Step 5: Simplify the fraction if needed to express the probability in its simplest form or as a decimal. This step involves performing the division or reducing the fraction.

Key Concepts

Probability

Probability is a measure of the likelihood that a particular event will occur, expressed as a number between 0 and 1. In this context, it refers to the chance of randomly selecting a person who earned a bachelor's degree from the total number of degrees conferred. The probability can be calculated by dividing the number of bachelor's degrees by the total number of degrees.

Total Degrees

The total degrees refer to the sum of all degrees conferred across different levels and fields. In the provided table, the total number of degrees is 565.4 thousand, which includes bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in both natural sciences/mathematics and computer science/engineering. This total is essential for calculating probabilities.

Relative Frequency

Relative frequency is the ratio of the number of times an event occurs to the total number of trials or observations. In this case, it can be used to determine the proportion of bachelor's degrees relative to the total degrees. This concept helps in understanding how common a bachelor's degree is compared to other degree levels within the dataset.