Problem Solving

Three people each took 5 tests. If the ranges of their scores in the 5 practice tests were 17, 28 and 35, what is the minimum possible range in scores of the three test-takers?

A. 17
B. 28
C. 35
D. 45
E. 80

nikhilgmat31 wrote:Three people each took 5 tests. If the ranges of their scores in the 5 practice tests were 17, 28 and 35, what is the minimum possible range in scores of the three test-takers?

A. 17
B. 28
C. 35
D. 45
E. 80

Assume that no one can get a negative score on the exam.

Let the range of all the 3 test takers start at 0 points.

#1. lowest to highest: 0 to 17
#2. lowest to highest: 0 to 28
#3. lowest to highest: 0 to 35

miminum range = lowest of (0,0,0) to highest of (17,28,35): 0 to 35

range = 35 - 0 = 35

ans = c

The key to this approach is to make as much overlapping of score as possible between the 3 test takers.