Questions

EXTENSION 1 1. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2015 HSC 4 MC

Stage 6 A rowing team consists of 8 rowers and a coxswain.

Combinatorics (Ext1), A1 Working with Combinatorics (Y11) The rowers are selected from 12 students in Year 10.
Permutations and Combinations (Ext1) The coxswain is selected from 4 students in Year 9.

Teacher: padmini bonala In how many ways could the team be selected?
Exam Equivalent Time: 115.5 minutes (based on allocation of 1.5 minutes per mark) (A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

2. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2020 HSC 8 MC

Out of 10 contestants, six are to be selected for the final round of a competition. Four of those six will be
placed 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th.
In how many ways can this process be carried out?
HISTORICAL CONTRIBUTION A.
Combinatorics has contributed a healthy average of 9.3% per new syllabus Ext1 exam since it was
introduced in 2020. B.
This topic has been split into two sub-categories for analysis purposes which are: 1-Permutations and
Combinations (4.3%) and 2-Binomial Expansion (5.0%). C.
This analysis looks at Permutations and Combinations.
D.

HSC ANALYSIS - What to expect and common pitfalls

Permutations and Combinations (4.3%) has been examined in both the multiple choice and longer answer 3. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2016 HSC 8 MC
sections of every new syllabus Ext1 exam to date.
A team of 11 students is to be formed from a group of 18 students. Among the 18 students are 3 students
Recent multiple choice questions have ratcheted up the typical band 4 difficulty level of this question type, who are left-handed.
and multiple choice questions in the period 2019-23 deserve particular attention.
What is the number of possible teams containing at least 1 student who is left-handed?
The pigeonhole principle represents new Ext1 content whose importance is underlined by its inclusion in
every new syllabus exam, including longer answer questions in both 2022 and 2020. We recommend (A)
particular attention be given to 2021 Ext1 10 MC and 2020 Ext1 12c that caused problems with mean (B)
marks of 31% and 52% respectively.
(C)
Common question types require a deep understanding or ordered and unordered combinations, as well as
combinations in a circle where 2023 Ext1 10 MC produced a mean mark of just 19%! All question styles (D)
are well represented in the database.
We recommend students get exposure to questions involving geometry, last examined in 2022 where it
was poorly answered (mean mark 37%).
Be aware that this topic area is the source of some of the most difficult questions examiners have thrown
at students (some of the beasts include 2015 Ext1 14c, 2014 Ext1 14b and 2010 Ext1 7c).
4. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2012 HSC 5 MC 7. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2017 HSC 10 MC
How many arrangements of the letters of the word are possible if the and the are to Three squares are chosen at random from the 3 × 3 grid below, and a cross is placed in each chosen
be together in any order? square.
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

5. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2013 HSC 7 MC

What is the probability that all three crosses lie in the same row, column or diagonal?
A family of eight is seated randomly around a circular table.
A.
What is the probability that the two youngest members of the family sit together?
B.
(A)

C.
(B)

D.
(C)

(D)
8. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2019 HSC 8 MC
In how many ways can all the letters of the word PARALLEL be placed in a line with the three Ls together?
6. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2014 HSC 8 MC
A.
In how many ways can 6 people from a group of 15 people be chosen and then arranged
in a circle? B.
(A)
C.
(B)
D.
(C)

9. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2021 HSC 10 MC

(D)
The members of a club voted for a new president. There were 15 candidates for the position of president
and 3543 members voted. Each member voted for one candidate only.
One candidate received more votes than anyone else and so became the new president.
What is the smallest number of votes the new president could have received?
A. 236
B. 237
C. 238
D. 239
10. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2022 HSC 7 MC 13. Combinatorics, EXT1′ S1 2019 HSC 10 MC
The diagram shows triangle with points chosen on each of the sides. On side , 3 points are An access code consists of 4 digits chosen from the digits 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. The code will only work
chosen. On side , 4 points are chosen. On side , 5 points are chosen. if the digits are entered in the correct order.
Some access codes contain exactly two different digits, for example 3377 or 5155.
How many such access codes can be made using exactly two different digits?
A. 630
B. 900
C. 1080
D. 2160

How many triangles can be formed using the chosen points as vertices? 14. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2022 HSC 12b
A. 60
B. 145 A sports association manages 13 junior teams. It decides to check the age of all players. Any team that
has more than 3 players above the age limit will be penalised.
C. 205
A total of 41 players are found to be above the age limit.
D. 220
Will any team be penalised? Justify your answer. (2 marks)

11. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2018 HSC 8 MC

15. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2023 HSC 11b
Six men and six women are to be seated at a round table.
In how many different ways can all the letters of the word CONDOBOLIN be arranged in a line? (2 marks)
In how many different ways can they be seated if men and women alternate?
A.
16. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2011 HSC 2e
B.
C. Alex’s playlist consists of 40 different songs that can be arranged in any order.

D. i. How many arrangements are there for the 40 songs? (1 mark)

ii. Alex decides that she wants to play her three favourite songs first, in any order.

12. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2023 HSC 10 MC How many arrangements of the 40 songs are now possible? (1 mark)

A group with 5 students and 3 teachers is to be arranged in a circle.

17. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2004 HSC 2e
In how many ways can this be done if no more than 2 students can sit together?
A. A four-person team is to be chosen at random from nine women and seven men.

B. i. In how many ways can this team be chosen? (1 mark)

C. ii. What is the probability that the team will consist of four women? (1 mark)

D.
18. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2021 HSC 11d
A committee containing 5 men and 3 women is to be formed from a group of 10 men and 8 women.
In how many different ways can the committee be formed? (1 mark)
19. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 11 26. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2020 HSC 12c
A multiple choice quiz asks students 4 questions. Each question has three possible answers, a, b or c, and To complete a course, a student must choose and pass exactly three topics.
students must attempt each question.
There are eight topics from which to choose.
How many students must do the quiz to ensure that at least two sets of answers are identical? (2 marks)
Last year 400 students completed the course.
Explain, using the pigeonhole principle, why at least eight students passed exactly the same three topics.
20. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 12 (2 marks)

Eleven numbers are randomly chosen from the set of integers, , where
27. Combinatorics, EXT1′ A1 2007 HSC 5a
Prove that the sum of two of the eleven numbers randomly selected must equal 21. (2 marks) A bag contains 12 red marbles and 12 yellow marbles. Six marbles are selected at random without
replacement.
i. Calculate the probability that exactly three of the selected marbles are red. Give your answer correct to
21. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 13 two decimal places. (1 mark)
A sock drawer contains blue, white and green socks. ii. Hence, or otherwise, calculate the probability that more than three of the selected marbles are red. Give
If individual socks are randomly chosen from the drawer, what is the minimum number that must be your answer correct to two decimal places. (2 marks)
selected to ensure there are at least three pairs? (2 marks)
28. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 6
22. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 4 i. In how many ways can the numbers 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 be arranged around a circle? (1 mark)

How many numbers greater than 6000 can be formed with the digits 1, 4, 5, 7, 8 if no digit is repeated. (2 ii. How many of these arrangements have at least two odd numbers together? (2 marks)
marks)

29. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 21

23. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 14
Eight points , are arranged in order around a circle, as shown below.
A delivery company has 1095 packages to deliver on a given day.
It has 17 delivery vans that will deliver all packages. If one van delivers more packages than all other vans,
P1
the company pays the driver a $100 bonus.
P8 P2
What is the minimum number of packages a van could deliver and still win the $100 bonus. (2 marks)

24. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2012 HSC 11e P7 P3

In how many ways can a committee of 3 men and 4 women be selected from a group of 8 men and 10
women? (1 mark)
P6 P4
P5
25. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2007 HSC 5b
Mr and Mrs Roberts and their four children go to the theatre. They are randomly allocated six adjacent i. How many triangles can be drawn using these points as vertices? (1 mark)
seats in a single row. ii. How many pairs of triangles can be drawn, where the vertices of each triangle are distinct points? (2
marks)
What is the probability that the four children are allocated seats next to each other? (2 marks)

30. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 5

i. In how many ways can the letters of COOKBOOK be arranged in a line? (1 mark)

ii. What is the probability that a random rearrangement of the letters has four O's together? (2 marks)
31. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2004 HSC 4c 36. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2015 HSC 14c
Katie is one of ten members of a social club. Each week one member is selected at random to win a prize. Two players and play a series of games against each other to get a prize. In any game, either of the
players is equally likely to win.
i. What is the probability that in the first 7 weeks Katie will win at least 1 prize? (1 mark)
To begin with, the first player who wins a total of 5 games gets the prize.
ii. Show that in the first 20 weeks Katie has a greater chance of winning exactly 2 prizes than of winning
exactly 1 prize. (2 marks)
i. Explain why the probability of player getting the prize in exactly 7 games is . (1 mark)
iii. For how many weeks must Katie participate in the prize drawing so that she has a greater chance of
winning exactly 3 prizes than of winning exactly 2 prizes? (2 marks) ii. Write an expression for the probability of player getting the prize in at most 7 games. (1 mark)

iii. Suppose now that the prize is given to the first player to win a total of games, where is a
32. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2006 HSC 3c positive integer.
By considering the probability that gets the prize, prove that
Sophie has five coloured blocks: one red, one blue, one green, one yellow and one white. She stacks two,
three, four or five blocks on top of one another to form a vertical tower.
i. How many different towers are there that she could form that are three blocks high? (1 mark) . (2 marks)

ii. How many different towers can she form in total? (2 marks)

37. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2014 HSC 14b

33. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2008 HSC 4b
Two players and play a game that consists of taking turns until a winner is determined. Each turn
Barbara and John and six other people go through a doorway one at a time. consists of spinning the arrow on a spinner once. The spinner has three sectors , and . The
probabilities that the arrow stops in sectors , and are , and respectively.
i. In how many ways can the eight people go through the doorway if John goes through the doorway after
Barbara with no-one in between? (1 mark)
ii. Find the number of ways in which the eight people can go through the doorway if John goes through the
doorway after Barbara. (1 mark)

34. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2010 HSC 3a

At the front of a building there are five garage doors. Two of the doors are to be painted red, one is to be
painted green, one blue and one orange.
i. How many possible arrangements are there for the colours on the doors? (1 mark)

ii. How many possible arrangements are there for the colours on the doors if the two red doors are next to
each other? (1 mark) The rules of the game are as follows:
• If the arrow stops in sector , then the player having the turn wins.
35. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 20 • If the arrow stops in sector , then the player having the turn loses and the other player wins.
How many rectangles, including all squares, can be found in the 4 × 5 grid below, in total? (2 marks) • If the arrow stops in sector , then the other player takes a turn.
Player takes the first turn.
i. Show that the probability of player winning on the first or the second turn of the game is
. (2 marks)

ii. Show that the probability that player eventually wins the game is . (3 marks)
38. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2010 HSC 7c Worked Solutions
i. A box contains identical red balls and identical blue balls. A selection of balls is made from the
box, where . 1. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2015 HSC 4 MC
Explain why the number of possible colour combinations is . (1 mark)
ii. Another box contains white balls labelled consecutively from to . A selection of balls is
made from the box, where .

Explain why the number of different selections is . (1 mark)

iii. The red balls, the blue balls and the white labelled balls are all placed into one box, and a
selection of balls is made.

Using the identity, or otherwise, show that the number of different selections is

. (3 marks) 2. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2020 HSC 8 MC

Copyright © 2004-23 The State of New South Wales (Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW)

3. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2016 HSC 8 MC

4. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2012 HSC 5 MC

5. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2013 HSC 7 MC 9. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2021 HSC 10 MC

♦♦ Mean mark 31%.

6. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2014 HSC 8 MC

10. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2022 HSC 7 MC

♦♦ Mean mark 37%.

7. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2017 HSC 10 MC

11. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2018 HSC 8 MC

♦ Mean mark 42%.

8. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2019 HSC 8 MC

♦ Mean mark 47%.

12. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2023 HSC 10 MC 14. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2022 HSC 12b

T1

S SS

T3 T2

SS 15. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2023 HSC 11b

♦♦♦ Mean mark 13%.

16. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2011 HSC 2e

13. Combinatorics, EXT1′ S1 2019 HSC 10 MC
i.

ii.

17. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2004 HSC 2e

i.

ii.

18. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2021 HSC 11d

19. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 11 24. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2012 HSC 11e

COMMENT: Note that “By PHP”

refers to by pigeonhole principle.

20. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 12

25. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2007 HSC 5b
COMMENT: Note that “By PHP”
refers to by pigeonhole principle.

21. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 13

COMMENT: Note that “By PHP”

refers to by pigeonhole principle.

26. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2020 HSC 12c

22. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 4

Mean mark 52%.

23. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 EQ-Bank 14

COMMENT: Note that “By PHP”

refers to by pigeonhole principle.
27. Combinatorics, EXT1′ A1 2007 HSC 5a 28. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 6
i. i.

ii.

Even Even
ii.

Odd Odd

Even

29. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 21

i.

COMMENT: In part (ii), divide by 2 to

account for duplicate pairs.
ii.
30. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 5 31. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2004 HSC 4c
i.
i.

ii.

ii.

iii.
32. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2006 HSC 3c 34. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2010 HSC 3a

i.
i.

ii.

ii. ♦ Mean mark 50%

MARKER’S COMMENT: Drawing a
diagram was a successful strategy
for many students in this part.

33. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2008 HSC 4b

35. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 SM-Bank 20
i.

ii.
36. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2015 HSC 14c 37. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2014 HSC 14b
i. i.

♦♦♦ Mean mark 19%.

♦♦ Mean mark 25%.

HINT: Expand out the solution

ii. to get a better idea of what you need

to prove.
♦♦♦ Mean mark 23%.

ii.

♦♦♦ Mean mark part (iii) 9%.

iii.

♦♦♦ Mean mark 11%. Lowest in the

2014 HSC exam!
HINT: The use of ‘eventually’ in
the question should flag the
possibility of solving by using in
a GP.
38. Combinatorics, EXT1 A1 2010 HSC 7c
Copyright © 2016-2024 M2 Mathematics Pty Ltd (SmarterMaths.com.au)
i. ♦♦♦ Mean mark 4%.
COMMENT: Solving this part
required high level logical reasoning
which proved extremely challenging
for the vast majority of candidates.

ii.

♦♦♦ Mean mark 18%.

iii.
♦♦♦ Mean mark part (iii) 2%. Beast
alert – equal lowest mean mark of
any part of any question since this
data has been available post-2009.