Updating the post with OA and OE.
Vercules wrote:
According to a survey of graduating university students conducted by the International Association of Rose Vendors, MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than are other graduates in planning to present roses to their partners on Valentine’s Day.
The question is about comparisons and grammatically both "more likely than" and "as likely as" will be correct.
The correct idiom is "A is more likely than B to plan/ do etc. (something)", "in planning" is incorrect
If a choice would have been correct if it were " MBA graduates are five times more likely than other graduates to plan on presenting"(A) MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than are other graduates in planning to present
"in planning is" unidiomatic and "MBA graduates" are incorrectly being compared with "are other graduates" (B) MBA graduates are nearly five times more likely than other graduates who plan on presenting
again incorrect comparison is being made between "MBA graduates" and "other graduates who plan". The relative clause starting with "who" is only modifying "other graduates" and not "MBA graduates".(C) MBA graduates are nearly five times as likely as other graduates to plan on presenting
This choice is correct; the meaning is clear and the construction is idiomatic and concise.
(D) it is nearly five times more likely that MBA graduates rather than other graduates will plan to present
"it' is an ambiguous pronoun; moreover, only one of "more likely" and "rather than" is required; this creates redundancy.
(E) it is nearly five times as likely for MBA graduates than other graduates to plan to present
This choice has the same error as choice (D). "to plan to present" is less preferred than "to plan on presenting" and the comparison "as likely --- than" is incorrect.