{"id":7173,"date":"2022-08-30T12:29:13","date_gmt":"2022-08-30T12:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/blog\/business-school-insider\/?p=7173"},"modified":"2022-08-30T17:29:47","modified_gmt":"2022-08-30T17:29:47","slug":"land-your-score-yesno-data-sufficiency-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/gmat\/land-your-score-yesno-data-sufficiency-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"The Kaplan Method for Data Sufficiency Questions on the GMAT"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Data Sufficiency (DS) questions are unique to the GMAT. When first encountered they are cumbersome, confusing, and generally frustrating. Admittedly, Data Sufficiency questions often remain cumbersome, confusing, and generally frustrating, but such is the nature of the GMAT. After all, the better you do, the harder the test gets! However, a thorough understanding of the characteristics and attributes of these questions coupled with a proven method of attack will allow you to handle just about anything the GMAT has to offer.<\/p>\n<p>The prescribed task for Data Sufficiency questions is straightforward enough: based on the provided information, determine whether a posed question can be answered. The structure of these questions is unwaveringly consistent: a question is asked, two statements of additional information are provided, and the five answer choices that follow are always the same.<\/p>\n<div  style='padding-bottom:10px; ' class='av-special-heading av-special-heading-h3    avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_heading  avia-builder-el-first  '><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  > Data Sufficiency Questions Types: Value and Yes\/No.<\/h3><div class='special-heading-border'><div class='special-heading-inner-border' ><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>A\u00a0<i>Value<\/i>\u00a0question<\/strong>\u00a0asks for a numerical value (e.g.,\u00a0<i>What is the value of x?<\/i>). For information to be considered sufficient, that information must allow us to deduce only\u00a0<b>one<\/b>\u00a0value<i>\u00a0<\/i>for\u00a0<i>x<\/i>.<\/li>\n<li><strong><i>Yes\/No<\/i>\u00a0questions<\/strong>\u00a0(e.g.,\u00a0<i>Is x odd?<\/i>) merely want one of those answers, either of which is acceptable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For\u00a0<i>Yes\/No<\/i>\u00a0DS questions, it is that last bit that presents somewhat of a dogleg in the conceptual understanding of this type. Simply put, test takers must recognize and accept that \u201cno\u201d is a sufficient answer. Consider the presented example\u00a0<i>\u201cIs x odd?\u201d<\/i>\u00a0Now, if, through the provided information, we learn that\u00a0<i>x<\/i>\u00a0is not odd and instead\u00a0<i>x\u00a0<\/i>is even, then we would be able to answer the question. The answer would be, \u201cNo.\u00a0<i>x\u00a0<\/i>is not odd.\u00a0<i>x\u00a0<\/i>is even.\u201d Answering the question is all we need to be able to do.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s keep with the example for a moment longer. A\u00a0<i>very<\/i>\u00a0common misstep would be that, after learning\u00a0<i>x<\/i>is definitively even, a person then concludes the provided information is\u00a0<i>insufficient<\/i>. But why? We answered the question, didn\u2019t we? Remember: if you can unequivocally answer a\u00a0<i>Yes\/No<\/i>\u00a0DS question with\u00a0<i>either<\/i>\u00a0a \u201cyes\u201d or a \u201cno,\u201d you\u2019ve got sufficiency. Insufficiency is the result of information that, when evaluated, culminates in a \u201csometimes yes\u201d and\/or a \u201csometimes no\u201d response. Sometimes is not good enough. Always is mandatory.<\/p>\n<p><div  style='padding-bottom:10px; ' class='av-special-heading av-special-heading-h3    avia-builder-el-1  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_heading  '><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Kaplan Method for Data Sufficiency<\/h3><div class='special-heading-border'><div class='special-heading-inner-border' ><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\nAs with every question format on the GMAT, you\u00a0<i>must<\/i>\u00a0have a proven step-by-step methodical approach. Do this for every Data Sufficiency question:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Analyze the Question<\/strong>\u00a0[This first step consists of three separate parts.]\n<ul>\n<li>Determine if it is a\u00a0<i>Value<\/i>\u00a0or\u00a0<i>Yes\/No<\/i>\u00a0question type.<\/li>\n<li>Simplify the question. [For example, if the question is\u00a0<i>\u201cWhat is the value of m if n = 3t \u2013 2m?\u201d<\/i>\u00a0then you would rearrange the given equation in the form of\u00a0<i>m = (3t \u2013n)\/2\u00a0<\/i>since the question asks about\u00a0<i>m.<\/i>]<\/li>\n<li>Identify what information, if it were provided, would be sufficient to answer the question. [In the above example, we would look for values of\u00a0<i>t\u00a0<\/i>and\u00a0<i>n,<\/i>\u00a0two additional equations using these variables, or a value for the expression\u00a0<i>(3t \u2013n)\/2.<\/i>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Evaluate the statements<\/strong>\u00a0(<i>aka<\/i>, the provided information) using 12TEN. [I\u2019ll break down what\u00a0<i>12TEN<\/i>stands for in the answer choice discussion below.]<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Note what happens when using the Kaplan Method for Data Sufficiency: you do\u00a0<i>a lot<\/i>\u00a0of work\u00a0<i>before<\/i>\u00a0you look at the statements. Such an approach is essential if you truly want to beat GMAT DS questions.<br \/>\n<div  style='padding-bottom:10px; ' class='av-special-heading av-special-heading-h3    avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_heading  '><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Data Sufficiency Answer Choices<\/h3><div class='special-heading-border'><div class='special-heading-inner-border' ><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\nNow, let\u2019s consider the answer choices. As stated, the five answer choices for DS questions are always the same. Step 2 of the Kaplan Method for Data Sufficiency uses a handy mnemonic that helps keep those answer choices straight as well as ensures you assess the statements in the proper order.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the breakdown:<\/p>\n<p>(<b>1<\/b>) The first statement provides enough information to answer by itself, but the second statement does not;<br \/>\n(<b>2<\/b>) The second statement provides enough information to answer by itself, but the first statement does not;<br \/>\n(<b>T<\/b>) Only when the two statements are considered\u00a0<i>together<\/i>\u00a0does one have sufficient information to answer the question;<br \/>\n(<b>E<\/b>)\u00a0<i>Either<\/i>\u00a0statement provides enough information to answer the question when considered individually;<br \/>\n(<b>N<\/b>)\u00a0<i>Neither<\/i>\u00a0statement, when considered alone or together, provides sufficient information to answer the question. Additional information is necessary.<\/p>\n<p>As per the answer choices as well as Kaplan\u2019s mnemonic, it is imperative that you evaluate the two statements individually\u00a0<i>before<\/i>\u00a0assessing them together. After evaluating Statement 1, regardless of whether it was sufficient or insufficient to answer the question, you must pretend as if you never saw it when you take a look at Statement 2. The only time you use the information in both statements together is if each individually were found to be insufficient on their own. At that point, you are only deciding between answer choices\u00a0<b>T<\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<b>N<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p><div  style='padding-bottom:10px; ' class='av-special-heading av-special-heading-h3    avia-builder-el-3  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_promobox  '><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Applying The Kaplan Method<\/h3><div class='special-heading-border'><div class='special-heading-inner-border' ><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now let&#8217;s see how to apply the Kaplan Method to\u00a0one of the most challenging question types on the GMAT: \u201cYes\/No\u201d Data Sufficiency questions. These require more practice (and critical thinking skills) than any other part of the test.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s begin with a sample GMAT question:<\/span><br \/>\n\t<div   class='av_promobox  avia-button-no   avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_heading '>\t\t<div class='avia-promocontent'><p>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If\u00a0<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0is the sum of three consecutive positive integers, is\u00a0<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0a multiple of 24?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(1) The smallest of the 3 integers is even.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(2)\u00a0<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a multiple of 3.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>(A) The first statement provides enough information to answer by itself, but the second statement does not;<br \/>\n(B) The second statement provides enough information to answer by itself, but the first statement does not;<br \/>\n(C) Only when the two statements are considered\u00a0<i>together<\/i>\u00a0does one have sufficient information to answer the question;<br \/>\n(D)\u00a0<i>Either<\/i>\u00a0statement provides enough information to answer the question when considered individually;<br \/>\n(E)\u00a0<i>Neither<\/i>\u00a0statement, when considered alone or together, provides sufficient information to answer the question. Additional information is necessary.<\/p>\n<p>\n<\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The first step in the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kaplan Method for Data Sufficiency<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is to Analyze the Question Stem. First, we note that this is a Yes\/No question. Because we are concerned with the sum of three consecutive positive integers, we can craft an equation by calling the smallest integer <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This makes the other integers (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 1) and (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 2), respectively. Therefore, the sum of the three consecutive integers can be written <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0+ (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 1) + (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 2). By combining like terms we see that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> = 3<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 3. We can then factor and get the equation <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> = 3(<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 1).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Because this is a Yes\/No question, we aren\u2019t looking for the value of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">or <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. What we need to know is, \u201cIs 3(<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 1) a multiple of 24?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, we evaluate the statements. Statement 1 tells us that the smallest integer is even. If <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is even, then <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">x<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + 1 will always be odd. And 3 times an odd integer is always odd as well. Odd numbers cannot have even factors, so because <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is always odd, we know for certain that the answer to the question is No; <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is not a multiple of 24.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Inexperienced test-takers often forget a critical fact at this point. It is easy to look at this evaluation, see that the answer is No, and conclude that Statement 1 is therefore Insufficient. \u201cNo\u201d is the same as Insufficient, right? Without <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">thinking<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">critically<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, you could fall into this trap!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><div  style='padding-bottom:10px; ' class='av-special-heading av-special-heading-h4  blockquote modern-quote  avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_promobox  el_before_av_hr  '><h4 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Apply critical thinking to evaluating statements<\/h4><div class='special-heading-border'><div class='special-heading-inner-border' ><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The key to correctly evaluating Yes\/No Data Sufficiency <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/gmat\/free\/gmat-20-minute-workout\">GMAT questions<\/a> is to recognize that<\/span><b> the answer itself doesn\u2019t matter; whether the answer is definite is all that matters<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Here, we know that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">t<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is ALWAYS odd, which means the answer to the question is ALWAYS NO. That is as sufficient as it gets! You don\u2019t need anything else to have a definitive answer to the question posed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The best way to evaluate Statement 2 would be to imagine numbers that are multiples of 3, then ask whether they are always multiples of 24 (or whether they are never multiples of 24). It doesn\u2019t take long to see that 15 is a multiple of 3 but is not a multiple of 24. However, 24 is also a multiple of 3, and it IS a multiple of 24. So one number yields a No answer and the other yields a Yes. Because this statement leads you to two possible answers, it is Insufficient. \u201cCould be Yes, could be No\u201d equals Insufficient every time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The takeaway here is that <\/span><b>\u201cAlways No\u201d is always Sufficient<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Drill yourself on Yes\/No questions to be sure this clicks; <\/span><b>Yes\/No questions require a definite answer<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, regardless of whether that answer is Yes or No.<\/span><br \/>\n<div   class='hr hr-short hr-center   avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_testimonials '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n<div   data-autoplay='1'  data-interval='5'  data-animation='fade'  data-hoverpause='1'  class='avia-testimonial-wrapper avia-grid-testimonials avia-grid-2-testimonials avia_animate_when_almost_visible   '>\n<section class ='avia-testimonial-row'><div class='avia-testimonial av_one_half flex_column no_margin avia-testimonial-row-1 avia-first-testimonial' ><div class='avia-testimonial_inner'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia-testimonial-image'  itemprop=\"image\"  ><\/div><div class='avia-testimonial-content '  ><div class='avia-testimonial-markup-entry-content'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Jennifer Mathews Land has taught for Kaplan since 2009. She prepares students to take the GMAT, GRE, ACT, and SAT and was named Kaplan\u2019s Alabama-Mississippi Teacher of the Year in 2010. Prior to joining Kaplan, she worked as a grad assistant in university archives, a copy editor for medical websites, and a dancing dinosaur at children&#8217;s parties. Jennifer holds a PhD and a master\u2019s in library and information studies (MLIS) from the University of Alabama, and an AB in English from Wellesley College. When she isn\u2019t teaching, she enjoys watching Alabama football and herding cats.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class='avia-testimonial-meta'><div class='avia-testimonial-arrow-wrap'><div class='avia-arrow'><\/div><\/div><div class='avia-testimonial-meta-mini'  itemprop=\"author\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/Person\" ><strong  class='avia-testimonial-name'    itemprop=\"name\" >Jennifer Land<\/strong><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div  class='avia-builder-widget-area clearfix  avia-builder-el-8  el_after_av_testimonials  avia-builder-el-last '><div id=\"text-76\" class=\"widget clearfix widget_text\">\t\t\t<div class=\"textwidget\"><p><span data-sumome-listbuilder-embed-id=\"70f62512b89832cc8e7fcd96b9d03245c2794cf0b7170fa257f26acec72436d9\"><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><div id=\"text-77\" class=\"widget clearfix widget_text\">\t\t\t<div class=\"textwidget\"><p><span data-sumome-listbuilder-embed-id=\"71160db829b51adcc3539815988485f372b020407413c2957efe50cfe72ea639\"><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Data Sufficiency (DS) questions are unique to the GMAT. When first encountered they are cumbersome, confusing, and generally frustrating. Admittedly, Data Sufficiency questions often remain cumbersome, confusing, and generally frustrating, but such is the nature of the GMAT. After all, the better you do, the harder the test gets! However, a thorough understanding of the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27613,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[55],"tags":[56],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7173"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7173"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41227,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7173\/revisions\/41227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}