BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

Is this type of question fair game/ to be expected on the te

Problem Solving — algebra and arithmetic (GMAT Focus Edition)
This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Post Reply
Previous Topic Next Topic
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 192
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pm
Thanked: 20 times
Followed by:5 members
GMAT Score:650

Is this type of question fair game/ to be expected on the te

by bpolley00 » Tue Jul 23, 2013 10:12 am
Image

In the diagram above, what is the value of y?

(1) x = 5

(2) a = b

Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient.

Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient.

Both statements TOGETHER are sufficient, but NEITHER one ALONE is sufficient.

EACH statement ALONE is sufficient.

Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient.

Is this type of question to be expected, where the angles adjust based on postulates on a DS question? I have never seen anything like this in the OG and got it on a Manhattan test. Thanks
Top
Source: — Quantitative Reasoning |
User avatar
MBA Admissions Consultant
Posts: 2279
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2011 7:51 am
Location: New York
Thanked: 660 times
Followed by:266 members
GMAT Score:770

by Jim@StratusPrep » Tue Jul 23, 2013 11:52 am
I would say that it is fair game based off of similar questions, but only likely to occur if you are doing very well on the exam.
GMAT Answers provides a world class adaptive learning platform.
-- Push button course navigation to simplify planning
-- Daily assignments to fit your exam timeline
-- Organized review that is tailored based on your abiility
-- 1,000s of unique GMAT questions
-- 100s of handwritten 'digital flip books' for OG questions
-- 100% Free Trial and less than $20 per month after.
-- Free GMAT Quantitative Review

Image
Top
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 192
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pm
Thanked: 20 times
Followed by:5 members
GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Tue Jul 23, 2013 2:14 pm
Thanks Jim, I just haven't seen a DS question that would ask a triangle question quite like that until I took the Manhattan test today; which, I thought was much more difficult than anything in GMATprep/ the OG. I have got about 3 weeks left and I am going to be done with this test forever. I scored a 650 last time so I am hoping for a 700+ this time around. Currently I am hitting at 94% on PS and 92% on DS in the og and I have been ranging from 720-740 on the GMATPREP tests -obviously some repeat questions at this point. We will see what I do on test day. Thanks again for the quick response.

-BP
Top

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
Elite Legendary Member
Posts: 10392
Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pm
Location: Palo Alto, CA
Thanked: 2867 times
Followed by:511 members
GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Tue Jul 23, 2013 4:22 pm
Hi polley00,

This is an example of a multi-shape geometry question. Most Test Takers see just one of these - they're normally tough questions that take a long time to answer and they're not worth your time (especially if you have a pacing problem). This question is made even more difficult by the sheer number of variables and the fact that it's a DS question (so you can't count on the drawing to be accurate). To help you increase your chances of scoring in the range that you want to be scoring in, your best option for this type of question is to take a quick guess and move past it.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
Image
Top
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 192
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pm
Thanked: 20 times
Followed by:5 members
GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Tue Jul 23, 2013 4:44 pm
Rich,

Thanks for your thoughts.I have noticed that quite a bit with some of the questions on this test.......

-BP
Top
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 192
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pm
Thanked: 20 times
Followed by:5 members
GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Tue Jul 23, 2013 7:11 pm
Would you guys say that at the upper 700 level you see more ambiguity or would you say that it is simply about speed and attention to detail? I believe what I am beginning to see is random questions such as the one above; even-though, those questions aren't in the OG. Basically, I have read the OG like 3 times and I have typed up every single question at this point and every question from the additional pack you can buy, so I am beginning to kind of question the upper level 700 questions as there aren't previous examples of the principles they test in the OG. Am I mistaken making this statement or would you say that is factual - that the questions the GMAT begins to ask you are over principles perhaps you haven't seen in the OG or GMATprep before?

Thanks for your thoughts
-BP
Top

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
Elite Legendary Member
Posts: 10392
Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pm
Location: Palo Alto, CA
Thanked: 2867 times
Followed by:511 members
GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Tue Jul 23, 2013 8:05 pm
Hi BP,

By the very way it's designed, the GMAT has a limit to how many truly crazy/hard questions it can possibly throw at you. Those same crazy/hard questions tend to come from certain categories (multi-shape geometry, permutations, combinations, probability), but they can also be found in certain types of algebra or arithmetic. Sometimes the questions test rarer principles; sometimes they test you on an idea that you know, but in a way that you're not used to thinking about it.

On your best day, you'll only see about a half dozen questions per section that will truly make you think "wow, this is freaking hard." For that reason, many Test Prep companies are put in the position to "design" their own versions of "hard questions" because the amount of available source material is limited. On one hand, those designed hard questions are usually based on rules/concepts that the GMAT tests, so aspects of those questions ARE relevant. On the other hand, sometimes the questions don't look anything like how an actual GMAT question would look, so the overall relevance is sketchy.

Based on your goals, you don't need to worry about any of those crazy questions. Your missing points can be found on mid-level questions AND when you eliminate any existing silly mistakes from your process.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
Image
Top
User avatar
Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
Posts: 89
Joined: Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:22 am
Location: Bangalore, India
Thanked: 6 times
Followed by:2 members

by sidceg » Wed Jul 24, 2013 5:07 am
Can some one explain how to solve this question?

Thanks
Top
Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun Sep 12, 2010 12:32 pm
Thanked: 1 times
Followed by:1 members

by mgm » Fri Aug 02, 2013 6:15 pm
What is the OA?
Top
Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun Sep 12, 2010 12:32 pm
Thanked: 1 times
Followed by:1 members

by mgm » Fri Aug 02, 2013 6:16 pm
What is the OA?
Top
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 192
Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pm
Thanked: 20 times
Followed by:5 members
GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Wed Aug 07, 2013 9:13 am
I'll give it a go.
1) x=5

This is not sufficient. If you know x you can't find the base of the triangle because you do not know if it is a 90 degree triangle as it is not indicated in the diagram.
2) A=B
it is sufficient but I still don't get why

OA is B

Guys, I honestly wouldn't worry too much about this question. If I were you, I would focus strictly on the OG. If you go into the test and take it and there are questions such as the one above I would get highly suspicious and I would think very hard about how to go forward from there.
Top
User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 134
Joined: Fri Jan 23, 2009 1:23 pm
Location: California
Thanked: 59 times
Followed by:15 members

by dabral » Thu Aug 29, 2013 10:53 pm
Based on what I have seen on the GMAT so far, this question is not appropriate for the exam. It is entirely possible that I may be missing the easy way to do this problem, but I had to resort to Law of Sines to do this quickly. That means we are getting in to trigonometry, which is not tested on the GMAT. I would be curious to see the explanation to this question from the person who wrote this question.

Unless someone confirms that they have seen something similar on the GMAT, I would ignore this question. I do want to point out that I have encountered questions on topics that I thought were not tested on the GMAT, an example would be the computation formula for standard deviation, that particular question did not directly expect you to know that formula but it expected you to manipulate the standard deviation expression to arrive at that formula on the way to solving the problem. That question forced me to rewrite some of the content I create for the test. So it is possible that the GMAT is now pushing even harder concepts considering that the Quant scores have been creeping up.

But my sense is that this question is unlikely to be on the GMAT.
Free Video Explanations: 2021 GMAT OFFICIAL GUIDE.
Top
Post new topic Post Reply
• Page 1 of 1