Archive for April, 2008
Yesterday, we posted a 700+ level GMAT question. Below is the answer and explanation. How’d you do?
ANSWER: D
At Integrated Learning we call this kind of question an “overlapping group” question. To solve it, we advocate the Grouping Grid™, a handy way to line up all the elements of a grouping question and get the answer quickly. We won’t go into all the details here, but this is how it works for this question.
1. Start with the grid. Label as shown, though it doesn’t matter if England is on the top or on the side.
2. Next, fill in the squares that correspond with the data given in the problem. This problem is tougher because we only know that 80 people were in either England or France, but not both. You can see how we solve that issue with algebra.
3. In the Grouping Grid™, every column adds down and every row adds across. So you can now fill in all the boxes that you can infer from the given data.
4. Finally, to solve this problem, give one of the still-empty boxes the variable y and solve the two variables with two equations.
x + y = 70
(80 - x) + y = 40
Do the math and you will see that x = 55 and y = 15. Thus, we can further manipulate the grid and fill it in completely. The answer for who has been to both France and England is in the corresponding box, 35.
April 30th, 2008
Every Tuesday we post a 700+ level GMAT question here on our blog, and post the answer and explanation the following day. Do you have what it takes?
Of the 130 passengers on the airplane, 60 had been to France, 90 had been to England, and 80 had been to France or England, but not both. How many people had been to both France and England?
A) 0
B) 15
C) 25
D) 35
E) 55
About our questions:
We make every effort to maintain the look, feel, and complexity of the real exam, while respecting all copyright laws and the policies of GMAC.
April 29th, 2008
To give you even more GMAT practice, every Monday the About.com Business School Blog will feature a new exclusive Integrated Learning GMAT practice question. The answer will be posted the following Tuesday. So, check it out and see how you do! And while you are there, click around on the rest of the Business School pages on About.com for lots of other great resources including b-school profiles, career advice, admissions tips, etc
And, don’t forget about the IL700: Weekly GMAT Challenge here on our blog. The road to 700 starts one question at a time!
April 28th, 2008
This week Jeremy Shinewald, Founder of MBA Mission addresses our “Wait It Out” series where we discuss many of the issues facing people thinking about business school in the current climate. MBA Mission works with candidates around the world, guiding them through the entire admissions process, to be sure that each student’s unique attributes are showcased in a creative, compelling and focused way. Visit the MBA Mission web site for more information on the company’s boutique MBA admissions consulting services, and their blog for tips on essay writing, MBA planning, and other useful information.
I have been following Integrated Learning’s Blog postings with great interest, as they have considered the “wait it out” option for candidates who are concerned about applying in what is sure to be an ultra-competitive application year (commencing this June). One thing that should be written is that regardless of whether you think it is a good idea to apply now or to wait one more year to apply, it is always wise to take the GMAT well in advance of submitting your application, as this will remove a great deal of stress from the process and help you frame your decision making process going forward (for example, narrowing school choices and thus facilitating class visits well in advance). So, even if you do choose to push back your target date for applying, you should not cease to take steps toward advancing your candidacy.
As more and more candidates have asked us about the competitiveness of the upcoming admissions season, we have been pretty consistent with our advice. Although it is quite likely that application volumes will continue to surge, we remain “economically agnostic”. We suggest that candidates ignore external economic events and apply when the time is right for them, professionally and personally. After all, professional economists constantly disagree about the state of the economy and its path forward. Can we really say with certainty that the economy will “bottom-out” this year and that we will therefore see a peak in application volume this year? If the economy is in even rougher shape one year from now, should candidates wait an additional year after that? How long can forces that are out of your control prolong your quest for an MBA?
We find that most candidates who are contemplating putting off their applications are not just concerned about the competitiveness of the application pool, but are also worried about the deteriorating job situation on campus. Obviously, it is challenging to predict what the fulltime job situation will be like for candidates who are applying now and will be graduating in the spring of 2011. While we would never ignore the importance of that first post-MBA job, we feel that many candidates focus exclusively on the short term rewards of the MBA and fail to consider the long-term value. With a long term view, (wherein candidates gain an enduring and transferable skill set) pursuing an MBA at the right time personally and professionally, regardless of external circumstances, is still a compelling proposition.
April 24th, 2008
Yesterday, we posted a 700+ level GMAT question. Below is the answer and explanation. How’d you do?
Answer: D
Since each employee typically produces 60 units per day, in a month of 20 days the total units produced would have been 48,000. In February, though, 5 employees were sick for four days each, so they combined did not produce 1200 units while they were sick (4 x 5 x 60).
Because of that, Company X produced only 46,800 units in February. Divide by 40 employees and 20 days, and we arrive at an average of 58.5 units per employee per day.
April 23rd, 2008
Every Tuesday we post a 700+ level GMAT question here on our blog, and post the answer and explanation the following day. Do you have what it takes?
Each of the 40 employees at Company X produces 60 units of Product Y per workday. However, in February, 5 employees were sick for an average (arithmetic mean) of four days each. If February had 20 workdays, what was the average number of units produced per employee per day in February?
a) 65
b) 62.5
c) 60
d) 58.5
e) 55
About our questions:
We make every effort to maintain the look, feel, and complexity of the real exam, while respecting all copyright laws and the policies of GMAC.
April 22nd, 2008
Yesterday, we posted a 700+ level GMAT question. Below is the answer and explanation. How’d you do?
Answer: B
About our questions:
We make every effort to maintain the look, feel, and complexity of the real exam, while respecting all copyright laws and the policies of GMAC.
April 16th, 2008
Every Tuesday we post a 700+ level GMAT question here on our blog, and post the answer and explanation the following day. Do you have what it takes?
About our questions:
We make every effort to maintain the look, feel, and complexity of the real exam, while respecting all copyright laws and the policies of GMAC.
April 15th, 2008
The official GMAT website tells us what is being tested or measured in the reading comprehension passages:
“Understanding words and statements in reading passages: Questions of this type test your understanding of and ability to comprehend terms used in the passage and your understanding of the English language.
Understanding the logical relationships between significant points and concepts in the reading passages: Questions of this type ask you to determine the strong and weak points of an argument or to evaluate the importance of arguments and ideas in a passage.
Drawing inferences from facts and statements in the reading passages: Questions of this type ask you to consider factual statements or information and, on the basis of that information, reach a general conclusion.
Understanding and following the development of quantitative concepts as they are presented in verbal material: Questions of this type involve the interpretation of numerical data or the use of simple arithmetic to reach conclusions about material in a passage.”
The reading comprehension questions fall into one of several categories. If you can identify the type of question being asked you will be better prepared to answer it.
Factual Questions. These tend to be the easiest questions to answer but also the most time consuming. The correct answer will paraphrase something specific in the passage, not something implied by it. As with all question on this challenging test, the writers include curveballs to throw you off base.
Main Idea Questions. These questions will address the passage’s overall theme. The writers will try to fool you by offering answer choices with information discussed in the passage, but it may not necessarily reflect the central theme. Answers that emphasize a lot of factual information can be eliminated, as they are probably too narrow in scope. You can often find the answer to the main idea either in the first or last paragraph of the passage.
Tone Questions. These questions ask you about the author’s opinion. When you read the passage initially try to gauge the writer’s opinion. When this question pops up, hopefully you can answer it without referring back to the passage, by recalling the overall feel of the passage. As a rule, the tone is more likely to be positive or neutral as opposed to negative. (Science passages are often neutral.) This question may appear as “The author’s attitude can best be described as…” or “The writer’s tone can be described as…”
Inference Questions. We discussed these in an earlier post. These questions do not test your knowledge of an explicitly stated fact, but rather your ability to draw conclusions from such information. Inference questions may ask you the author’s opinion. You can often identify such questions with words like hint, imply, suggest.
Word in Context Questions. These ask you to determine the meaning of a word in the context of the passage. I suggest reading one sentence before the word and one sentence after it. See if you can determine your own synonym before looking at the answer choices.
A good tip to remember in deciphering reading comprehension questions is to pay close attention to the scope of the question. If you are being asked something specific, your answer should be specific. And vice versa, as with main idea questions, if asked a general question, the answer should be broad and not focus on specific details.
April 14th, 2008
The data sufficiency is really unlike any other type of math question. You don’t actually answer the math question, rather you must determine if you have enough information to answer the question. These style questions do not require any skills beyond those needed for the other math on the GMAT. Given the unique nature of this type of question, you should practice them and familiarize yourself with the directions. We discussed them in this previous post. The main purpose of these questions is to lure you into making an unwarranted assumption.
The first thing you should do when you see a data sufficiency question is list the answer choices as follows. (We’ll get to why this is important in second):
AD
BCE
Additionally, the initial information given can often be presented in a convoluted manner. If you can translate this into something more easily decipherable, you will help yourself. For example, if one of the conditions is X is a factor of Y, you can rewrite this as “Y/X is an integer”. 3x=9y can be simplified to x=3y.
If you see a question like this, you should manipulate it as best you can into a simple algebraic expression.
Is x divisible by 2? Can be expressed as: Is x even?
Is X greater than 0? Can be rephrased as: Is x positive?
Once you have simplified the initial information, look at statement 1. Can you determine the answer to the question? Remember, you do not need to solve the problem just evaluate if you have enough information to calculate an answer.
If Statement 1 is sufficient, cross off BCE as there is no way any of those choices could be the correct answer. If you find that you need more information after evaluating the first statement, cross off AD as neither of those answers can be correct.
Once you have eliminated several answer choices, look at statement 2 independently. Using only the information in statement 2, determine if there is enough information to answer the question. Based on your answer, you should be able to cross off more answer choices.
If neither statement provided sufficient data independently, try to solve the problem using the information in both statements. You can then determine if your answer is C (combined, the two statements provide enough information) or E (not enough information).
If you are being asked to solve for a variable, remember you must have as many expressions or algebraic sentences as you do variables. To solve for X, you only need one statement with the one variable X in it. If you have two variables, you need two independent statements to determine the values of each variable. Three variables would require three statements, and so on. Be careful, though, because the test writers like to trick people into thinking they have two distinct algebraic statements when they really don’t. We’ll cover this trap in a later post, so stay tuned.
Remember – practice, practice, practice – and it will get easier!
April 10th, 2008
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