Integrated Reasoning Problems With Multiple Solutions
After seeing quite a few Integrated Reasoning problems floating around out there, I’ve found that one of the toughest situations to deal with is when instead of providing a single solution, the GMAT constructs a world with multiple possible solutions and then asks you to pick something that works within those parameters. Let me show you an example:
—
x, y and z are positive integers. The sum of x and y is 40. The positive difference between y and z is 20.
In the table below, identify values for x and z that are together consistent with the information. Make only one selection in each column.
| x | z | |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | ||
| 20 | ||
| 25 | ||
| 45 | ||
| 60 |
—
Found the answer yet? If not, I think I might know why: You’re trying to solve for y. The problem is, y could be almost any integer from 1 to 39, as long as you pick values for x and z that work. You could figure out x and z for every single value of y, but that’s a very time-consuming strategy! Without the answer choices, there are more than 50 different solutions to this problem. So what is a better strategy than trying to solve for y?
Is the MBA worth it? Use Critical Reasoning to Decide!
A colleague here at Manhattan GMAT forwarded me this infographic about the value (or lack thereof) of an MBA. Though the author doesn’t explicitly say so, the statistics she chose to display indicate that she believes an MBA is by and large overvalued.
The great irony here, of course, is that the training you get as an MBA is exactly the training that sharpens your ability to think critically about arguments like this one. In fact, that’s what the GMAT actually tests with its Critical Reasoning section. Just to demonstrate, I’d like to break down this infographic from top to bottom, using the same strategy I teach my students: pointing out the (flawed) assumptions necessary to conclude that an MBA is overvalued.
Premise: The cost of an MBA program including expenses is $120,000.
Assumption #1: Students actually pay all of that $120,000.
Attack: I’d estimate that around half of my MBA classmates had some scholarship or corporate support that significantly defrayed their cost. This, by the way, is probably the most underrated reason to ace your GMAT “ a high GMAT score can open the door to many merit-based scholarships.
Are You Taking Too Many Practice GMATs?
My GMAT students are often surprised when I advise them not to take a practice test.
I don’t advise this for every student on every occasion; there are some legitimate uses for practice tests. In general though, I find that my students take too many practice tests at the expense of other more beneficial forms of study for a given circumstance.
Think of the GMAT like a Mozart sonata. Let’s say you are a pianist, and you want to learn the sonata. Would you begin by playing the whole piece from start to finish? No, instead you would work in small sections. You would identify the sections that are easy, and you would work on those sections just enough to maintain your ability. Mainly, you would be concerned with the difficult sections of the piece, which you would practice slowly and intently. Not until you had mastered those sections would you move on.
After you have put in all that practice time, you want to make sure that you can maintain your ability within the context of the larger piece. That’s when you want to play the whole piece: when you want to check to see whether your prior work is ingrained or whether you forget it when you are distracted by the other demands of the piece.
Winning Ugly on the GMAT
[Editor’s Note: This is the first post by Manhattan GMAT Instructor Ryan Jacobs! Welcome him in the comments.]
Have you ever heard of a guy named Brad Gilbert?
Brad Gilbert was a professional tennis player in the 1980’s and early 1990’s. He was not particularly skilled or highly ranked. Tennis champion Andre Agassi says, Every shot Brad hit, you were like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ His shots aren’t pretty. The first time we played, I was convinced the guy couldn’t play tennis.” But Gilbert was known for his surprising victories over some of the best tennis players in the world, most notably John McEnroe. When Gilbert retired from tennis, he became Agassi’s coach and helped Agassi beat superstar talents such as Pete Sampras and Patrick Rafter. The way Gilbert won despite having less raw physical capability than his opponent, and the way he taught Agassi to do the same, is important to understand if you’re a tennis player.
It’s also important to understand if you’re a GMAT student.