A00-232 sample questions

Question 1

A programmer needs to combine a very large transaction dataset (`WORK.TRANSACTIONS`, 50 million rows) with a small product lookup table (`WORK.PRODUCTS`, 2,000 rows) to add the `ProductName` to the transaction data. The `WORK.TRANSACTIONS` dataset is not sorted by `ProductID`. What is the most computationally efficient method to perform this lookup, minimizing both CPU time and I/O operations?

Accepted Answer

In a DATA step, load the `WORK.PRODUCTS` dataset into a hash object, then iterate through `WORK.TRANSACTIONS` and use the `.FIND()` method to look up the `ProductName`.

Answer

Sort both datasets by `ProductID` using `PROC SORT`, then combine them using a `MERGE` statement in a DATA step.

Answer

Use a `PROC SQL` left join to connect `WORK.TRANSACTIONS` with `WORK.PRODUCTS` on `ProductID`.

Answer

Create a custom format from the `WORK.PRODUCTS` dataset using `PROC FORMAT` with the `CNTLIN=` option, then apply this format to the `ProductID` in a new DATA step.

Question 2

You are debugging a complex SAS macro that dynamically generates SQL code. You suspect that a macro variable is not resolving to the expected value, causing the SQL query to fail. You need to see the exact value of the macro variable as it is being resolved by the macro processor. Which system option is specifically designed for this purpose?
```mermaid
flowchart TD
Start[Macro Call] --> MacroProcessor{Macro Processor}
MacroProcessor -->|Resolves &myvar| SymbolGenLog[SYMBOLGEN writes: &myvar resolves to 'Value']
MacroProcessor -->|Generates Code| MPrintLog[MPRINT writes: proc sql... where col = 'Value']
SymbolGenLog --> MPrintLog
MPrintLog --> Execution
```

Accepted Answer

SYMBOLGEN

Answer

MLOGIC

Answer

MPRINT

Answer

MTRACE

Question 3

A marketing analyst needs to find all customer comments in the `SURVEY.RESPONSES` table that contain either the word 'service' or 'support', but not when these words are part of a larger word (e.g., 'serviced' should not match). The search must be case-insensitive. Which `WHERE` clause correctly implements this logic using PRX functions?

Accepted Answer

where prxmatch('/\b(service|support)\b/i', comments);

Answer

where prxmatch('/service|support/', comments);

Answer

where findw(comments, 'service',,'i') or findw(comments, 'support',,'i');

Answer

where prxmatch('/^(service|support)$/i', comments);

Question 4

A data analyst is tasked with creating a summary report from a `SALES` table. The report needs to show the total revenue for each product category, but only for categories that have generated more than $1,000,000 in total revenue. Which two clauses must be used in the `PROC SQL` step to achieve this? (Select TWO).

Accepted Answer

GROUP BY

Accepted Answer

HAVING

Answer

WHERE

Answer

ORDER BY

Answer

FILTER

Question 5

A SAS programmer has written the following macro. The intent is to pass a numeric value and have the macro evaluate if it is greater than 100.

%macro check_value(val);
%let result = %eval(&val > 100);
%put The result is &result;
%mend;

The programmer then calls the macro with a non-integer value: `%check_value(val=105.5)`.

What is the outcome of this macro call?

Accepted Answer

An ERROR is written to the log because %EVAL only supports integer arithmetic.

Answer

The log displays: The result is 1

Answer

The log displays: The result is 0

Answer

A WARNING is written to the log, and the expression is evaluated using the integer portion of the number (105).

Question 6

To create a user-defined function that can be used in a DATA step or a WHERE clause, you must use PROC FCMP. True or False?

Accepted Answer

True

Answer

False

Question 7

A research institute is analyzing longitudinal patient data stored in `WORK.VISITS`, sorted by `PatientID` and `VisitDate`. For each visit, the analyst needs to calculate the number of days since that patient's *previous* visit. If it is the patient's first visit, the result should be a missing value. Which code snippet correctly computes this difference?

Accepted Answer

data want;
set work.visits;
by PatientID;
DaysSinceLast = dif(VisitDate);
if first.PatientID then DaysSinceLast = .;
run;

Answer

data want;
set work.visits;
by PatientID;
retain PrevVisitDate;
DaysSinceLast = VisitDate - PrevVisitDate;
if last.PatientID then PrevVisitDate = .;
PrevVisitDate = VisitDate;
run;

Answer

data want;
set work.visits;
by PatientID;
DaysSinceLast = VisitDate - lag(VisitDate);
if first.PatientID then call missing(DaysSinceLast);
run;

Answer

proc sql;
create table want as
select *, VisitDate - lag(VisitDate) as DaysSinceLast
from work.visits
group by PatientID;
quit;

Question 8

A programmer needs to query the SAS `DICTIONARY.TABLES` view to get a list of all datasets in the `WORK` library. However, they want to limit the result to the first 5 tables found and prevent the results from printing to the output window. Which `PROC SQL` statement correctly achieves this?

Accepted Answer

proc sql noprint outobs=5;
select memname from dictionary.tables
where libname = 'WORK';
quit;

Answer

proc sql;
select memname from dictionary.tables
where libname = 'WORK' and obs <= 5;
quit;

Answer

proc sql;
select memname from dictionary.tables(obs=5)
where libname = 'WORK';
quit;

Answer

proc sql noprint;
select top 5 memname from dictionary.tables
where libname = 'WORK';
quit;

Question 9

A developer needs to create a macro that accepts a dataset name and a variable list as parameters. The macro should then run `PROC MEANS` on the specified dataset and variables. It is crucial that if the user provides a variable list containing a special character, like 'Sales-Q1', the macro does not fail. Which macro function should be used to mask the special character during macro compilation?

Accepted Answer

%STR()

Answer

%QUOTE()

Answer

%BQUOTE()

Answer

%NRSTR()

Question 10

An analyst is working with a dataset containing monthly sales figures for 12 months, stored in variables `sales_jan`, `sales_feb`, ..., `sales_dec`. They need to calculate the total annual sales for each record and identify any record where a monthly sales figure is greater than 5000. Which is the most efficient and maintainable way to structure the DATA step to perform these tasks?

Accepted Answer

Define a numeric array over the 12 sales variables, then use a `DO` loop to iterate through the array to calculate the total and check each element's value.

Answer

Use a series of 12 `IF-THEN` statements to check each month's sales and a long `SUM()` function with all 12 variables listed.

Answer

Use `PROC TRANSPOSE` to reshape the data from wide to long, then use a DATA step with `BY` processing to calculate the sum and check for high values.

Answer

Write a macro that generates the necessary assignment and `IF` statements for each of the 12 months.

Free A00-232 sample questions

To create a user-defined function that can be used in a DATA step or a WHERE clause, you must use PROC FCMP. True or False?

A programmer needs to query the SAS `DICTIONARY.TABLES` view to get a list of all datasets in the `WORK` library. However, they want to limit the result to the first 5 tables found and prevent the results from printing to the output window. Which `PROC SQL` statement correctly achieves this?

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