Data sufciency:

If you are confdent that you understand the problem but fnd yourself struggling with
proving or disproving (1) and (2), it's probably E
!ata "u#ciency is a challenge that is uni$ue to the %&'( )ou won't fnd a !ata "u#ciency
problem anywhere else in the world, but if you want a respectable score on the *uantitative
part of the test, you'll need to spend a lot of time getting comfortable with the !ata
"u#ciency $uestion type
The Data Sufciency Format
If you're a complete novice, it's necessary to familiari+e yourself with the basic format
,ere's what a !ata "u#ciency item loo-s li-e.
If x is positive, is x a prime number/
(1) x is odd
(2) x 0 1
(here are three important components to any !" $uestion.
Information given in the question. ,ere, we -now that x is positive (hat will
never change ((here isn't always information given in the $uestion)
The question itself. 2e want to -now whether x is prime
The statements. (1) and (2) give us information that may or may not allow us to
answer the $uestion
The Process
Evaluate each statement on its own If there is information given in the $uestion, -eep that
in mind as well
3irst, loo- at (1) 4sing (1) alone, we -now that x is positive, and that it is odd Is that enough
information to answer the $uestion/ If x is a positive odd number, it could be prime. for
instance, if x 5 6 ,owever, it might not be prime. for instance, if x 5 7 (hus, we say that
statement (1) is insufcient
8e9t, loo- at (2) alone (he tric-y part is that you have to temporarily forget what you
learned in (1) (It may sound easy, but I absolutely guarantee you that you'll ma-e this
mista-e at least once, and probably many more times than that)
'gain, we're also considering information given in the $uestion ,ere, then, we -now that x
is positive, and that it is less than 1 If x is greater than : and less than 1, is it prime/ 'gain,
we don't -now It could be 6, which is prime, but it could be ;, which is not 3urther, we don't
-now that x is an integer, which opens up the possibility that x is, say, 2< "o, statement (2)
is insufcient
Putting the Statements Together
If both statements are insu#cient on their own, we must consider both of them together
,ere, we have all of the information available to us. x is positive, it is odd, and it is less than
1 (he only possible values for x are 1, 6, <, and =
"till, however, we don't have enough information 2hile 6, <, and = are prime, 1 is not a
prime (he statements, when ta-en together, are still insufcient
The Choices
>ne thing that ma-es !ata "u#ciency more manageable is that the choices never change.
(hey are the same on every single !" item ,ere they are.
(') "tatement (1) '?>8E is su#cient, but statement (2) alone is not su#cient
(@) "tatement (2) '?>8E is su#cient, but statement (1) alone is not su#cient
(A) @>(, statements (>%E(,EB are su#cient, but 8EI(,EB statement '?>8E is su#cient
(!) E'A, statement '?>8E is su#cient
(E) "tatements (1) and (2) (>%E(,EB are 8>( su#cient
(I wrote more about the choices, and some additional tric-s you can use to navigate them, in
this article
In the $uestion we Cust wor-ed through, the correct choice was (E)
Data Sufciency Strategies
I've written a few other articles on !ata "u#ciency, but to -eep things short, here are some
pieces of advice to start with.
!on't calculate e9cept when necessary )ou only need to -now whether the
statements are su#cient, not what the value of x is
"implify everything >ften, the $uestions are needlessly comple9, but if you spend a
few seconds loo-ing for what you really need to -now, you can ma-e the $uestion
much simpler
!on't pic- numbers as your default strategy ("ee. (he Derils of Dic-ing 8umbers)
2hen you're starting out, !ata "u#ciency can seem very daunting, but -eep practicing @y
the time you ta-e the test, you should be handling !" $uestions faster than Droblem "olving
items (because you don't have to calculate), and the format will be second nature
Data Sufciency Tips:
@e very familiar with the answer choices 8o e9cuses. >n !ata "u#ciency, theyEre
always the sameF Gnow in the blin- of an eye what choice A is >n test day, if you
fnd that "tatement 1 is insu#cient, be able to cross out choices ' and ! without
hesitation
%et in the habit of writing down what you absolutely need in order to fnd certain
$uantities Each statement alone will be su#cient if both of the statements on their
own contain all the information necessary to answer the $uestion (he statements
will be su#cient together if they contain every piece of necessary information
between them (a-e the area of a parallelogram, for e9ample !o you need to -now
every side length to determine the area/ If you have every side length, can you fnd
the area/
(rain yourself not to loo- at the statements together "tatement 2 may tell you that 9
is negative, but that fact has no bearing on "tatement 1 when viewed by itself
E9plore all the possibilities oHered by each statement individually If youEve
scrutini+ed "tatement 1 and found it su#cient, be e$ually merciless when it comes to
"tatement 2 !onEt let it oH the hoo- Cust because it doesnEt contradict "tatement 1
Bemember that important information is often buried in the prompt !onEt pay so
much attention to the statements that you forget the rest of the $uestion >ften, half
the information that you need is in the setIup
Gnow when itEs actually necessary to solve singleIvariable e$uations If the $uestion
as-s for the value of 9 and you whittle the problem down to an e$uation li-e 6:<9 5
2(<::) J 1:2:<, donEt waste your time solving for 9F ItEs only important to -now that
you A>4?! solve if you wanted to Bemember, all linear oneIvariable e$uations have
a uni$ue solution, but $uadratic e$uationsKe$uations with an 9L2 termKcan have
+ero, one, or two solutions
Quic Tips for Data Interpretation
In gleaning data from a chart, graph or table, it's remar-ably easy to inadvertently grab your
data from the wrong graph, bar, line, etc (his is the M1 cause of incorrect responses in A'(
!ata Interpretation (o avoid this blunder, point your fngerNpencil to the data you wantO put
your fngerNpencil directly against the $uestion paper and -eep it there until you're sure
you're loo-ing at the right part of the right chart or graph
Ahec- to see if the $uestion as-s for an appro9imation If so, you can safely estimate
numbers by rounding oH
C!"TI#$:
1 2hen rounding oH fractions, round the numerator and denominator in the same direction
(either up or down)O otherwise you'll distort the value of the fraction
2 !on't confuse percentages with raw numbers 'lways as- yourself which type of number
the chart or graph is providing, and which type the $uestion is as-ing for
6 It's o-ay to rely on visual appro9imations when it comes to reading bar graphs and line
charts (he testIma-ers are not out to test your eyesight "o if two or more answer choices
come very, very close to your solution, rest assured that you needn't estimate values more
precisely
(a-e 1<I6: seconds right up front to assimilate and ma-e sense of the chart, graph, or table
and be sure to read all the information around it %et a sense for what the variables are and
how they relate to one another, before you tac-le the $uestions
!ata may be represented in a number of comple9 forms, and hence solving !ata
Interpretation problems becomes far more di#cult (here is no f9ed format for solving such
problems, and each has to be tac-led in its own distinct way (hus, to answer such $uestions
correctly, it is essential to practice all types of !ata Interpretation e9ercises a number of
times, so as to be familiar with all the data presentation types )et, there are some primary
guidelines that can always be followed.
Tips on Solving D!T! I$T%&P&%T!TI#$ Pro'lems:
a) Bead the data very carefully, as the smallest detail may change the meaning of the
$uestion completely "imilarly, the instructions have to be understood carefully to prevent
wasting time in calculating data that is not re$uired, and also to fnd out e9actly what is the
answer that is sought
b) (ry to understand the data provided carefully, before Cumping to answer the $uestions
(he $uestions are designed to be deceptive, and proper understanding of the re$uirements
is a must If the !ata Interpretation is of the Aombined variety or if there are more than one
data tableNchartsNgraphs, try to understand the relation between the given tables 3or
E9ample, one table may tal- about absolute sales fgures, while the other table may tal- of
sales as a percentage of production ,ence, any $uestion on e9cess production or %oods in
stoc-, will re$uire data from both tables
c) @e very careful of the units used in the tables, and the units in which the answers
(options) are provided ' mista-e in the units may yield an entirely diHerent answer 'lso be
careful of whether the answer is re$uired in decimal or percentage "uch errors are common
and easily avoidable
&ea(ing comprehension:
%&'( Beading comprehension is a part of the verbal section )ou will fnd very less guidance
material on the internet or in the boo-s 2e -now that you need some guidance on Beading
Aomprehension and so after fltering the whole internet and the verbal boo-s and the
e9periences of the top scorers we are able to fnd T#P )* +,!T &%!DI$+
C#,P&%-%$SI#$ TIPS !$D ST&!T%+I%S.
,ere is a list of (op 1: Beading Aomprehension (ips and "trategies and Dointers that should
be remembered when dealing with the %&'( Beading Aomprehension.
). &ea( 'et.een the Paragraphs
%&'( e9aminers are smart people, they -now that you are nervous, you are in an alien
environment and you can easily fool 8ow thin- how can you be fooled, simple giving you
simple %&'( Beading Aomprehension and to read but tric-ing you in the $uestions and
answer choices &ostly it has been seen that whenever %&'( gives you a simple BA you
have 7:P inference base $uestions (he $uestions are simple and loo-s that you have seen
the answer and you will fnd he lines in the choices that you have Cust read in the passage
"adly, you have chosen the wrong answer
Bemember. Bead between the line of the passage and never mar- the choice that repeats
the line in the passage Inference base $uestion always need a new evidence to answer the
$uestion
/. &ea( for !uthor0s ,ain I(ea an( Primary Purpose
%&'( Beading Aomprehension may be tough and may be simple (he only thing to
remember is the 'uthorEs &ain Idea and Drimary Durpose 2ithout the 'uthorEs &ain Idea
and Drimary Durpose you may not be able to answer any $uestion (he faster you are able to
get 'uthorEs &ain Idea and Drimary Durpose the faster you will solve the BA $uestions
correctly 'uthorEs &ain Idea and Drimary Durpose is generally found in the last paragraph
1. Create a thought 2o.chart 'y .riting (o.n the ,ain I(ea an( Primary purpose
after each paragraph.
&oving to the ne9t point, to ma-e it easier to fnd the &ain Idea and Drimary purpose of the
passage always use the scratch paper to write down the &ain Idea and Drimary purpose of
each and every paragraph (his would help you -now each paragraph purpose and the
contribution towards the whole comprehension "ome time the idea changes in a single
paragraph and you might miss those points and mar- wrong choices "o write down about
each paragraph
3. The ,ain I(ea of the passage is the repeate( i(ea in each of the ,ain i(eas 4of
the paragraphs5
,ow to fnd you have chosen the right &ain idea If you have carefully followed the last point
than you can very easily fnd the correct main idea of the whole passage (his is how you
will fnd the main idea (he &ain Idea will repeat itself in most of the paragraphs 3ollow the
steps and you BA life will be easy
6. The primary purpose is mostly the Primary purpose of the conclu(ing
paragraph.
If you have been careful you will fnd that have discussed this point before this also %&'(
e9aminers are smart Gnow 2hy/ (hey -now that you will be stuHed till the end if the
passage so they put the Drimary purpose in the end (hatEs why you should be alert and
write down Drimary purpose and main idea of each paragraph
7. Classify the passages
'lways classify the passages %enerally %&'( Beading comprehension can be classifed in
three main categories 2ant to -now the three main categories/ ,ere they are.
). %8planatory 4,ostly Science passages9 e8plain one theory:phenomenon in
(etail5
/. Comparative 4t.o or more point of vie.s on a theory:topic. Doesn0t go in
much (etail5
1. !rgumentative 4Su';ective9 opinionate(. ,ostly social science : 'usiness
topics. Pros an( cons of a topic .ith author0s vie.s on them5
<. Paraphrase the te8t to simplify 4especially Questions an( choices5.
%&'( is a test of English, no need to remind you that but the thing to -eep in mind is the
Daraphrase of the te9t (he better you understand what you are dealing with the higher the
%&'( score "ometime %&'( as- you simple $uestion but camouQage it with di#cult word
and comple9 situations Daraphrase the te9t and answer the $uestion easily
=. Don0t over rea(. Sip e8amples9 (ates9 lengthy names9 any (etails .hich can 'e
referre( in case something is ase( e8plicitly.
Bead the passage carefully but donEt waste your time remembering the data or
understanding the comple9 English "imply s-im the passage and only remember the details
that you need to -now !onEt try to remember that are e9plicitly stated in the passage )ou
can get that detail when needed Bemember the details that are not stated and are implicitly
stated in the passage
>. Don0t go for choices .hich hol( true only for one part of the author0s
argument.
3amous %&'( tric- and the %&'( e9aminer are often luc-y enough to fool you "imply you
are given the statement that is either e9plicitly stated in the passage or refer only the part
of the argument to be true 'lways remember if the $uestion is divided in two parts than the
answer choice should also support both the parts
)*. Don0t go for choices .hich e8aggerate the author0s conclusion.
"ometime in %&'( Beading Aomprehension the $uestions as-ed are about the author !onEt
use your own -nowledge about the subCect or donEt answer based on the sentiments >nly
use the information mention in the passage !onEt answer the $uestion because it holds
true in the real world ?eave your real world outside the e9amination room 'nswer only
through the passage and donEt use your brain too much
&ea(ing comprehension:
1 Beading the $uestions, s-ip the frst one or get its' content
2 'fter reading a $uestion, return to the paragraph't this time, you will use scanning
and s-imming s-ills ,try to locate where the answer is 8ormally, the answers will
following one by one so you can save a little time
6 'fter completing all the answers, you return bac- to the frst one@ecause the frst
answer is usually a general $uestion"o after you answer the others , you will easy to
fnish this one
(he Beading Aomprehension $uestion type on the %&'( re$uires you to read
passages that are up to 6<: words long (about a page) and answer a small number of
$uestions about them (he verbal section of the %&'( is =< minutes long, during
which time you are li-ely to see between 6 and < reading passages, each with 6I;
$uestions each In rare cases, a passage will have only 2 $uestions attached
@ecause the %&'( is an adaptive test, there is no guarantee about how many BA
$uestions any given testIta-er will see on the e9am (he passage appears on the left
side of the screen, with a scroll bar if it runs more than one screen (he $uestions
appear one by one, on the right side of the screen (hus, the passage is always
visible to testIta-ers while wor-ing on $uestions %&'( passages may be about the
physical or biological sciences, social science, the humanities (history, art,
archaeology), or business topics, such as economic models, mar-eting strategies, or
human resource theories If you are ready to test your -nowledge chec- out the
sample Beading Aomprehension $uestions here