Since we have covered most of the major errors pertaining to GMAT Sentence, we will move our focus to the minor rules. You might or might nor encounter questions based on these minor rules and even if you do not more than one.
Among the vast array of rules pertaining to the Subjunctive Mood, there is one that gets tested on the GMAT — the one involving wishes, commands, requests and suggestions. It is one of the easier rules to grasp and execute. Let us look at the same using the GMAT Sentence Correction question below.
Of all the three questions types on the GMAT Verbal section — Sentence Correction, Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension — SC is the question type that most people preparing for the GMAT tend to take a liking towards (it goes without saying that RC is the most hated). This fancy towards SC often leads to aspirants really digging deep into Grammar. So much so that they start spouting Grammar jargon! But there is more to GMAT Sentence Correction than the rules — a process or approach that will ensure that you do not become/remain a Grammar expert but become a GMAT SC expert.
In one of the earliest Data Sufficiency posts on this blog, which you can read here and here, we discussed how the GMAT test-makers use the C-Trap to lure test-takers into making a mistake. The beauty of such questions is that the test-takers d not even realise that they have made a mistake. On the contrary they are very confident that they have answered it correctly. The C-Trap is set to lull test-takers into thinking that they can easily get the answer by using both the statements. But while both statements together will give you the answer, the question you need to ask is whether both statements are in fact required. Remember you need to choose option (C) only if both statements ARE required.
In the two previous posts we discussed two of the three argument types around which Strengthen-Weaken question of GMAT Critical Reasoning are posed — Plan of Action and X causes Y .The third type is also X causes Y but an argument built on Correlation-Causation and hence it is better to classify it as the Correlation-Causation type.
In the previous post on the Strengthen-Weaken question type, we discussed that there were three argument types around which strengthen-weaken type of questions are posed Plan of Action (PoA) X causes Y Correlation-Causation We discussed the PoA type of argument in that post, in this one we will look at the second type – X causes Y.
We have covered almost all the Critical Reasoning question types on the blog. A few readers had asked for specific posts on the Strengthen/Weaken Type, so the next few posts will cover these two question types in detail. Strengthen/Weaken question types together constitute the maximum number of questions out of the 13-15 Critical Reasoning questions you will encounter on the Verbal section of the GMAT. Strengthen/Weaken questions are usually broadly based on three types of argument structures: Plan of Action X causes Y Correlation-Causation We will take up one argument structure at a time and discuss the process to solve each type.
It goes without saying that the toughest GMAT Quant Problems are GMAT Data Sufficiency questions involving Inequalities. One specific issue that arises when solving tougher questions of this type is how to combine the two statements when both involve inequalities. Let us use two GMAT Data Sufficiency questions to understand how to go about combining inequalities.
Sometimes the process of teaching helps the teacher as much as the student. I was in Hyderabad the last weekend, conducting a GMAT Boot Camp for IMS Hyderabad students and during the course of the session, I discovered a better way to solve an old problem. Towards the end of a long and grueling day of solving 700-800 level problems we came to this Data Sufficiency problem as part of the segment where we focus specifically on the toughest type of Data Sufficiency problems – those involving inequalities.
As most test-takers would know a majority of the Critical Reasoning questions you will encounter will belong to the Strengthen-Weaken Type — out of the 13-14 Critical Reasoning questions you will encounter at the least 5 will be from these two types. You will posed with 1-2 questions from each of the other question types. While the Boldfaced Question, is most famous and understandably toughest question type, which we discussed in this post, the Complete The Passage question is the least understood of question types.
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