Important SAS A00-215 Exam Questions

Answer: C

Explanation:

In SAS, the FORMAT procedure (PROC FORMAT) allows users to create custom formats that can be used to change the way data is displayed without altering the data itself. The VALUE statement within PROC FORMAT is a key component of this procedure.

The VALUE statement can indeed create both numeric and character formats, which is why option C is correct. Numeric format names typically do not start with a $ sign (this is reserved for character format names), and the keyword UNKNOWN is not a part of the VALUE statement syntax; it is used in a different context within PROC FORMAT, specifically for handling undefined data values when using custom formats.

Moreover, the LIB= option is not used within the VALUE statement. The LIB= option is used at the PROC FORMAT level to specify the library where the formats should be stored or from which they should be read.

Reference

SAS 9.4 documentation for the PROC FORMAT and VALUE statement.

'SAS Formats and Informats.' in 'Step-by-Step Programming with Base SAS 9.4' from the SAS Institute.

Answer: A

Explanation:

In the DATA step provided, average is calculated using the mean function, which calculates the average of the non-missing values of the variables listed. The variables provided are:

var1 = 2

var2 = 4

var3 = .

var4 = 6

The mean function in SAS ignores missing values, represented by a period (.). Hence, the average is computed using the non-missing values (2, 4, and 6). The mean of these three numbers is calculated as: (2 + 4 + 6) / 3 = 12 / 3 = 4

Therefore, the value of average is 4.

SAS documentation on the MEAN function, SAS Institute.

Answer: D

Explanation:

In SAS, footnotes are set using the footnote statement and they will appear on all subsequent output until they are either changed or cleared. Based on the second image provided with the SAS code, the footnote for the second PROC PRINT report is set immediately before it runs.

The code sets footnote1 as 'Created by HR' and footnote2 as 'Confidential' initially. However, before the second PROC PRINT step, footnote2 is redefined as 'Draft - Do Not Distribute'. Since footnote1 is not redefined or cleared, it is no longer in effect for the second report.

Therefore, the only footnote that appears for the second PROC PRINT report is what is defined for footnote2 at that point in the code, which is 'Draft -- Do Not Distribute'. That's why the correct answer is D.

SAS 9.4 documentation for the FOOTNOTE statement: SAS Help Center: FOOTNOTE Statement

Answer: A

Explanation:

In the provided code snippet, Line 3 contains a syntax error. The keep statement is used incorrectly here; the correct keyword to use is where in order to filter the dataset. The correct line should be something like:

where Make = 'Honda';

So, the keep statement on Line 3 is not properly used, and also there appears to be a missing quotation mark at the end of 'Honda' which should be closed before the semicolon.

SAS documentation for the where statement.

Answer: B

Explanation:

In a DATA step concatenation in SAS, when multiple datasets are listed in a SET statement, SAS concatenates the datasets vertically, stacking them one on top of the other. The length of variables in the resulting dataset is determined by the first dataset that appears in the SET statement. If the same variable appears in multiple datasets, SAS uses the length as it is first encountered. It does not require columns with the same name to be renamed; rather, it stacks them directly. There is no maximum number of tables that can be listed in a SET statement for concatenation; more than two can be concatenated. Lastly, concatenation combines data vertically, not horizontally as option D suggests.

Reference

SAS 9.4 Language Reference: Concepts, 'Concatenating Data Sets.'