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C
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Difficulty:
85%
(hard)
Question Stats:
52% (02:02) correct
48%
(02:15)
wrong
based on 661
sessions
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In a recent year, several engineers both joined and left Company Z. Of those who left within their first year, 18 percent had an agile-project-management certification. By contrast, only 8 percent of all engineers who completed the annual HR survey reported having that certification. Thus, holding the certification appears to make an engineer more likely to leave Company Z within a year of being hired.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
(A) Most engineers who leave company Z within their first year do so voluntarily, often for positions at competing firms.
(B) Company Z does not provide incentives for employees to obtain professional certifications.
(C) Engineers are not required to report certifications they obtained prior to joining the company.
(D) The majority of engineers at company Z work in teams that use agile methodologies.
(E) Some engineers obtain their agile project management certification only after joining the company.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
(A) Most engineers who leave company Z within their first year do so voluntarily, often for positions at competing firms.
(B) Company Z does not provide incentives for employees to obtain professional certifications.
(C) Engineers are not required to report certifications they obtained prior to joining the company.
(D) The majority of engineers at company Z work in teams that use agile methodologies.
(E) Some engineers obtain their agile project management certification only after joining the company.
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03 Jul 2025, 08:30
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Bunuel
GMAT Club Official Explanation:
Answer: C.
(A) notes that most engineers who leave during their first year do so voluntarily, often to join competing firms. This answer choices never addresses whether certified engineers leave at a greater rate than non-certified engineers, so it fails to undermine the comparison that drives the argument.
(B) states that Company Z offers no incentives for employees to obtain professional certifications; because the argument hinges on the existing percentages of certified versus non-certified engineers rather than on company policy, this information is irrelevant and has no weakening effect.
(C) reveals that engineers are not required to report certifications acquired before joining the firm. If a sizeable share of certified engineers simply omit this information, the true company-wide percentage of certified engineers could be far higher than the reported eight percent, erasing or even reversing the apparent gap with the twelve-percent figure for early leavers and thus sharply weakening the conclusion.
(D) observes that most engineers already work on agile teams, but the prevalence of agile methodology does not speak to whether certification influences turnover, leaving the numerical comparison intact, and this point irrelevant.
(E) points out that some engineers obtain their certification after joining the company, introducing a possibility of reverse causation (they join first and receive a certification later and then leave, all within the first year); however, unless these post-hire certifications are missing from the eight-percent baseline (meaning they join, receive certification and leave), the numerical contrast remains unchanged, so this option weakens the argument only marginally and is less effective than choice (C).
General Discussion
03 Jul 2025, 08:10
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Was confused between C and E.
For C,if engineers are not required to report certifications,then that means the calculation of 8% reported is wrong.Then the logic fails that possessing the certification appears to make an engineer more likely to leave.
For E,the para is focusing on certificates and leaving and not on the timing of getting the certificates.
Hence C is the answer.
For C,if engineers are not required to report certifications,then that means the calculation of 8% reported is wrong.Then the logic fails that possessing the certification appears to make an engineer more likely to leave.
For E,the para is focusing on certificates and leaving and not on the timing of getting the certificates.
Hence C is the answer.
Bunuel
