CASE STUDY CHALLENGE

Probability Distribution: College Admissions

According to an educational board survey, it was observed that class XII students apply at least one to four weeks ahead of college application deadlines. Let \( X \) represent the week when an average student applies ahead of a college’s application deadline.

The probability of the student to get admission in the college \( P(X=x) \) is given as follows:

P(X=x) =
    kx/6,         when x = 0, 1 or 2
    (1-k)x/6,   when x = 3
    kx/2,         when x = 4
    0,           when x > 4

Where \( k \) is a real number.

Answer the following:

(i) Determine the value of \( k \). [1 Mark]
(ii) What is the probability that Mahesh will get admission in the college, given that he applied at least 3 weeks ahead of the application deadline? [1 Mark]
(iii) (a) Calculate the mathematical expectation of the number of weeks taken by a student to apply ahead of a college’s application deadline.

— OR —

(b) To promote early admissions, the college is offering scholarships. Determine the expected scholarship offered by the college using the values: ₹50,000 (4 weeks), ₹20,000 (3 weeks), ₹12,000 (2 weeks), and ₹9,600 (1 week).

[2 Marks]