A researcher randomly sampled 100 graduates of an MBA program and recorded data concerning their starting salaries. Of primary interest to the researcher was the effect of gender on starting salaries. The summary results are given below:

Male MBA Graduates: Sample mean = $85500, Sample standard deviation = 10000, Sample size = 50

Female MBA Graduates: Sample mean = $78000, Sample standard deviation = 8000, Sample size = 50

Assuming that the populations are normally distributed and the population variances from both populations are equal, is there evidence that the average starting salary of the male MBA graduates is higher than the average starting salary of the female MBA graduates? Use a 0.05 level of significance.

(a) State the null and alternative hypothesis for this problem.

(b) What is the value of the pooled-variance t_STAT test statistic for this problem?

(c) Using the level of significance = 0.05, what is the critical test value for this problem?

(d) What is your statistical decision for this problem?