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The table shows graduation data, by academic discipline, for undergraduate students who entered University A in 2003. Percentages are given to the nearest 0.1 percent.
| Academic discipline | Total number of students | Number who graduated within 6 years | Number who did not graduate within 6 years | Proportion of total who graduated within 6 years (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arts | 1087 | 504 | 583 | 46.4 |
| Business | 2813 | 1410 | 1403 | 50.1 |
| Communications | 888 | 503 | 385 | 56.6 |
| Engineering | 1036 | 367 | 669 | 35.4 |
| Health sciences | 810 | 452 | 358 | 55.8 |
| Humanities | 3366 | 1619 | 1747 | 48.1 |
| Natural sciences | 933 | 402 | 531 | 43.1 |
| Social sciences | 2479 | 1332 | 1147 | 53.7 |
| Total | 13412 | 6589 | 6823 | 49.1 |
For each of the following statements, select Yes if the statement is true based solely on the information in the table; otherwise select No.
Engineering had both the smallest number and the smallest proportion of students who graduated within 6 years.
Business is the discipline for which the ratio of the number of students who graduated within 6 years to the number of students who did not is closest to 1.
The discipline having the largest number of students who graduated within 6 years also has the largest number of students who did not graduate within 6 years.
Let's start by understanding this table showing graduation rates across different academic disciplines. The table contains:
Key insight: The table allows us to quickly compare both absolute numbers and percentages across disciplines.
For example, looking at one discipline (Humanities):
Note: By sorting this table in different ways, we can immediately identify maximums and minimums without manual comparison of all values – this will be crucial for our efficient analysis.
Let's analyze the statements in the most efficient order, starting with Statement 3.
Statement 3 Translation:
Original: "The discipline having the largest number of students who graduated within 6 years also has the largest number of students who did not graduate within 6 years."
What we're looking for:
In other words: Does the same discipline top both the "graduated" and "did not graduate" lists?
Let's use sorting to quickly find our answer:
We can immediately see that Humanities has both the largest number of graduates and the largest number of non-graduates. No calculation needed!
Statement 3 is YES.
Teaching callout: Notice how sorting eliminated the need to manually compare all disciplines. With one click, we instantly identified the maximum values in each column rather than writing down and comparing multiple numbers.
Statement 1 Translation:
Original: "Engineering had both the smallest number and the smallest proportion of students who graduated within 6 years."
What we're looking for:
In other words: Is Engineering at the bottom for both total graduates and graduation rate?
Again, sorting makes this verification quick and clear:
Both conditions are met – Engineering has both the smallest absolute number and the smallest percentage of graduates.
Statement 1 is YES.
Teaching callout: By using sorting rather than manual scanning, we quickly identified the minimums in both columns without having to check every discipline individually. This two-sort approach is much faster than calculating and comparing all values.
Statement 2 Translation:
Original: "Business is the discipline for which the ratio of the number of students who graduated within 6 years to the number of students who did not is closest to 1."
What we're looking for:
In other words: Is Business the discipline where the number of graduates is most similar to the number of non-graduates?
Let's approach this differently than the previous statements:
This visual scan confirms that Business has the ratio closest to 1.
Statement 2 is YES.
Teaching callout: For ratio questions, we can often use visual recognition rather than precise calculations. When looking for a ratio near 1, we simply look for two numbers that are very close to each other. This saves significant calculation time.
After analyzing all three statements:
Therefore, all three statements are YES.
Remember: The GMAT provides sorting functionality for a reason – always use it as your first analytical step to transform complex data questions into simple visual insights!
Engineering had both the smallest number and the smallest proportion of students who graduated within 6 years.
Business is the discipline for which the ratio of the number of students who graduated within 6 years to the number of students who did not is closest to 1.
The discipline having the largest number of students who graduated within 6 years also has the largest number of students who did not graduate within 6 years.