Auditing & Assurance › Audit Sampling

What are common sample selection methods?

Beginner

Answer

Methods include random selection (every item equal chance), systematic selection (every n-th item after a random start), monetary unit selection (value-weighted), haphazard selection (no conscious bias, for non-statistical), and block selection (contiguous items—generally discouraged as unrepresentative). The method must give a representative sample.
Real-world example The auditor uses systematic selection with a random start to pick every 50th invoice for testing.

Common follow-ups: Why is block selection discouraged? | Which methods suit statistical sampling?