As a GMAT test-taker, you are probably familiar with data sufficiency problems. These are one of the two question types that you will come across in the GMAT quant section, and you will find up to 10 of them on the exam. The rest of the 31 questions will be problem-solving questions.

The one thing that all GMAT data-sufficiency questions have in common is their structure. That is what essentially sets them apart from the problem-solving questions. 

Keep on reading to find out more about these questions’ particular structures and the topics that they cover:

The Question Structure

The GMAT data sufficiency problems have a very particular structure that they follow and that never changes. You are presented with a question and 2 different statements. You will also be given 5 answer choices that remain the same across all data sufficiency problems on the GMAT exam. These answer questions are the following:

A) Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient.
B) Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient.
C) BOTH statements TOGETHER are sufficient, but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient.
D) EACH statement ALONE is sufficient.
E) Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient.

Your job would be to determine whether the 2 statements that you are provided with are sufficient to answer the question.

What Topics are Covered?

Some of the math topics that you will see in this type of question are concepts from high school arithmetic, geometry, and algebra.

Below, you’ll find a list of all concepts you need to know for each math topic:

Geometry

Algebra

  • Functions
  • Equations
  • Inequalities
  • Exponents
  • Algebraic expressions
  • Polynomials
  • Permutations and combinations

Arithmetic

  • Basic statistics
  • Real numbers
  • Number theory
  • Fractions
  • Percentages
  • Decimals
  • Probability
  • Integer properties
  • Power and root

Word Problems

  • Sets
  • Profit
  • Percentage
  • Ratio
  • Rate
  • Interest
  • Mixtures

Common Mistakes People Make When Dealing With this Question Type

Actually Solving the Question

This is the #1 mistake most test-takers make with these problems. These problems are not meant to be solved. Instead, you will only need to set up the problem and not execute it. That is also more time-efficient for you and will give you some extra minutes that you can use to solve other questions. 

Over-calculating

This relates to the first point we made. This question type requires you to determine whether the data you have is sufficient to solve the problem. In that case, calculating won’t help you determine that. On the contrary, over-calculating will eat up your precious minutes.

Rushing

This is yet another common mistake that almost everyone is guilty of. You will have to spend just enough time reading through the question in order to come up with a solution. Rushing through it won’t help you do that, and you will probably miss out on essential details that would otherwise make your life easier. 

Not Understanding the Facts

What most test-takers fail to consider is that the fact lies in the 2 statements that are included in the questions. Those are the only facts that you have to consider as true and use in your question-solving process. 

3+ Tips to Master this Question Type

Review the Fundamentals

That is the first step you need to go through before going in for actual practice tests. Knowing that you will encounter these high school math fundamentals in every single quant problem, is enough to convince anyone to review and revise everything beforehand.

Memorize the Answer Choices

This might sound a bit intimidating at first as most answer choices are very long sentences that tend to be similar to each other in content. However, there is a way to make this easier for you. What you need to do is synthesize the answer choices into simpler and more manageable options. That way, they will be easier to remember. This is what we suggest:

  1. Only statement 1
  2. Only statement 2
  3. Both statements together
  4. Either statement
  5. Neither statement

Examine Each Statement Separately

That is definitely the way to go with this GMAT question. You will need to determine whether one of the statements, both, either, or neither is sufficient, and you cannot do that unless you look at each of them separately first.

Now that you have read the article and are well-aware of the best ways to solve data sufficiency problems on the GMAT, try your hand at this practice question.

 

Contributor: Altea Sulollari
Date: 29th January, 2021