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

Redeem

Target Test Prep · GMAT

Choose how you want to prepare

Learn live with an expert or move at your own pace. Every option includes the complete TTP study system.

★★★★★5.0559 reviews
GMATLiveTeach Starts Oct 17
Chris Peckover, Target Test Prep GMAT expert
LIVE ONLINE CLASSES

Get Ready for GMAT Test Day Faster with Live Online Classes

with Chris Peckover, 100th-Percentile GMAT Scorer

Oct 17 · Chris Peckover
Sat · 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM ET
Oct 20 · Chris Peckover
Tue, Thu · 8:00 to 10:00 PM ET
Oct 25 · Josh Braslow
Sun · 1:00 to 4:00 PM ET
Included
40 hours of live online classes + 6 months of TTP OnDemand
  • Attend the first class for free
  • Every class is recorded, so you never fall behind
View classes & enroll
Limited seats availableTarget Test Prep
EALiveTeachOnDemand 5 seats left Start anytime
EXECUTIVE ASSESSMENT

Target Test Prep EA OnDemand

Self-paced EA prep. Study on your schedule.

Logan Thompson
EXECUTIVE ASSESSMENT

Sep 6 to Dec 6, 2026

with Logan Thompson

165+ EA score guarantee
$05-day trial no automatic billing
Schedule
Sun · 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM ET
Included
40 hours of live online classes plus six months of access to the complete TTP EA OnDemand course.
  • 165+ EA Score Guarantee
  • 4,100+ Quant, Verbal, and Integrated Reasoning practice questions
  • 400+ hours of in-depth video lessons
  • 3,000+ step-by-step video solutions
View EA class & enroll Start free 5-day trial
Limited cohort · enrollment openTrial includes full course accessTarget Test Prep
GMATOnDemand Start anytime
SELF-PACED MASTERCLASS

Target Test Prep GMAT OnDemand

Complete access from day one. Study on your schedule.

715+ score guarantee
$0to start then $127/mo
  • Personalized study plan and analytics
  • Thousands of lessons and practice questions

Compare the format, schedule, and included access before enrolling. Prices and seat counts shown reflect the supplied offer details.

Two distinct numbers a and b are chosen

Expert replies
by VJesus12 » Sat Oct 14, 2017 6:35 am
Two distinct numbers a and b are chosen randomly from the set of first 20 positive integers. What is the probability that |a-b| would not be divisible by 3?

A. 49/380
B. 21/95
C. 49/190
D. 42/95
E. 133/190

OA is E.

I tried to do the list of possibilities but it is too large and I don't know how to use Probability here. Experts, can you show me how to solve this PS question?
Join the discussion
Source: — Problem Solving |

by [email protected] » Sat Oct 14, 2017 11:21 am
Hi VJesus12,

There are a couple of different ways to approach this question, but you should pay attention to the answer choices - they provide a big potential 'shortcut' here (notice that 4 of the answers are LESS than 50%).

The question asks for the probability that (A-B) is NOT divisible by 3. To start, it's important to note that MOST integers are NOT divisible by 3, and since (A-B) will be an integer, it's likely that the correct answer is going to be greater than 50%. That having been said, here's how you can do a bit of work to prove it.

The real issue here is how A and B 'relate' to one another. We're dealing with distinct integers from 1-20, inclusive. As an example...

IF... A=20, then for (A-B) to be divisible by 3, B would have to be one of the following: 17, 14, 11, 8, 5 or 2. That's only 6 of the 19 possible options. 6/19 is about 1/3, so about 2/3 of the options would NOT lead to a result that was divisible by 3.

You can also take a look at a value of A that IS a multiple of 3....

IF... A=18, then for (A-B) to be divisible by 3, B would have to be one of the following: 15, 12, 9, 6 or 3. That's only 5 of the 19 possible options. 5/19 is less than 1/3, so over 2/3 of the options would NOT lead to a result that was divisible by 3.

Thus, regardless of the value that you pick for A, the limited number of options for B mean that MOST of the values for (A-B) will NOT be divisible by 3. The correct answer would have to be far greater than 50%, and there's only one answer that fits....

Final Answer: E

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
Image
Join the discussion