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Bunuel
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 16 Apr 2020, 04:12
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D
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!

Difficulty:

95% (hard)

Question Stats:

32% (01:42) correct 68% (01:41) wrong based on 979 sessions

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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth

Twin Weaken question: https://gmatclub.com/forum/helen-it-was ... 21343.html
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D
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 04 May 2020, 08:02
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth
Show more

Scanning all the answer choices we see that each option has part of the conclusion or premise, we have to choose the best conclusion.

(A) NOT the whole conclusion. INCORRECT.

(B)Again NOT the whole concluison. INCORRECT.

(C)Too wide, Helen is confined to what Mark did and is NOT widely generalizing on any principle, she does talk of lying being morally wrong, but this option is much wider than that. INCORRECT.

(D)Clearly the best option, simple and to the point. CORRECT.

(E)Again too vast," ALWAYS " is the key phrase, which is too wide. INCORRECT.

Ans- D

Hope it's clear.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 21 Jun 2020, 21:25
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stne
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth

Scanning all the answer choices we see that each option has part of the conclusion or premise, we have to choose the best conclusion.

(A) NOT the whole conclusion. INCORRECT.

(B)Again NOT the whole concluison. INCORRECT.

(C)Too wide, Helen is confined to what Mark did and is NOT widely generalizing on any principle, she does talk of lying being morally wrong, but this option is much wider than that. INCORRECT.

(D)Clearly the best option, simple and to the point. CORRECT.

(E)Again too vast," ALWAYS " is the key phrase, which is too wide. INCORRECT.

Ans- D

Hope it's clear.
Show more


She does talk of lying being morally wrong and i considered this to be an indicator to pick the option C.
HOw are we supposed to know here that we dont have to pick the generalized answer?
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 22 Jun 2020, 08:26
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stne
Bunuel
Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth

Scanning all the answer choices we see that each option has part of the conclusion or premise, we have to choose the best conclusion.

(A) NOT the whole conclusion. INCORRECT.

(B)Again NOT the whole concluison. INCORRECT.

(C)Too wide, Helen is confined to what Mark did and is NOT widely generalizing on any principle, she does talk of lying being morally wrong, but this option is much wider than that. INCORRECT.

(D)Clearly the best option, simple and to the point. CORRECT.

(E)Again too vast," ALWAYS " is the key phrase, which is too wide. INCORRECT.

Ans- D

Hope it's clear.


She does talk of lying being morally wrong and i considered this to be an indicator to pick the option C.
HOw are we supposed to know here that we dont have to pick the generalized answer?
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Hi riagarg07,

Let me explain by asking you a question, why did you consider option D to be wrong?
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 22 Jun 2020, 10:00
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Let me explain by asking you a question, why did you consider option D to be wrong?[/quote]

Hi stne,

The fact that it is quoting exact wordings from the passage
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 22 Jun 2020, 11:05
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Bunuel

Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth

The fact that it is quoting exact wordings from the passage
Show more

Hi riagarg07,

Option D is not quoting the exact words of the premise, it is actually the most precise conclusion. We are required to find the main conclusion of the premise. Option C is a generalization is not the best option.

In cases where we are required to find the main conclusion, please stick with the option that is most close to the premise.

Hope it's clear.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 14 Mar 2023, 02:15
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Is it correct in CR to make generalization between what is right and wrong?
I chose A, as it doesn't bring the third party's judgement.
Enlighten me with an explanation.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 14 Mar 2023, 15:27
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Bunuel

Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth

The fact that it is quoting exact wordings from the passage

Hi riagarg07,

Option D is not quoting the exact words of the premise, it is actually the most precise conclusion. We are required to find the main conclusion of the premise. Option C is a generalization is not the best option.

In cases where we are required to find the main conclusion, please stick with the option that is most close to the premise.

Hope it's clear.
Show more

I think the real challenge is identifying which part of the argument stated constitutes the conclusion. I initially picked option E. But after reading the various explanations and going through the argument more carefully, I realized the argument starts with the conclusion (judgment call). One might argue that the first part of the last sentence constitutes part of the conclusion but if we work with the assumption that the conclusions are quite specific in GMAT CR questions, then we can conclude that the last statement, which is more of a premise than the first, cannot contain the main conclusion.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 15 Mar 2023, 13:58
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth
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Bunuel why not C? Please explain. Someone please give some official solution
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 15 Mar 2023, 15:06
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Bunuel
Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth


Bunuel why not C? Please explain. Someone please give some official solution
Show more

The question asks to identify the main point Helen is making in her argument. The main point of Helen's argument is that it was morally wrong for Mark to lie to his mother about why he missed her birthday party. The general moral claims made in the argument are there to support her main point rather than being the main point themselves. That makes choices (C) and (E) incorrect. Choice (A) is also incorrect because Helen's main point is not that Mark lied but rather that it was morally wrong for him to do so. Choice (B) is also incorrect since Helen's main point is not related to the reason for Mark's absence but rather to the lie he told their mother.

Hope it's clear.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 27 Sep 2023, 10:12
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I’m a bit confused, because I thought it would be E. I understand that answer E is vast, but she introduced the vastness in her argument by saying in her conclusion “Saying that something that is false can NEVER be other than morally wrong…”

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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 27 Sep 2023, 10:17
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Bmoreira1
I’m a bit confused, because I thought it would be E. I understand that answer E is vast, but she introduced the vastness in her argument by saying in her conclusion “Saying that something that is false can NEVER be other than morally wrong…”

Posted from my mobile device
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I tried addressing this here: https://gmatclub.com/forum/helen-it-was ... l#p3174677 Hope it helps.
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea Updated on: 29 Jun 2024, 10:01
Originally posted by bronaugust on 29 Jun 2024, 09:43.
Last edited by bronaugust on 29 Jun 2024, 10:01, edited 2 times in total.
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Quote:
Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that

(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth
Show more
Let us deploy IMS's four-step technique to answer this question.

STEP #1 -> IDENTIFY THE QUESTION TYPE BY READING THE QUESTION STEM

The question stem states, 'The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that'. Clearly, we are to identify the main conclusion in the stated argument. This is not the standard conclusion question although we might still want to call it a 'conclusion' question type. Note that you are to find the conclusion IN the argument and not FROM it! 

Now that we know what the question type is, let us proceed to the second step. 

STEP #2 -> PERFORM THE 'WHY TEST'

Since we are dealing with an unusual conclusion question, let us figure out the conclusion and the basis on which the conclusion is arrived at. We may subject each sentence to what is called the 'WHY TEST'. As per this test, the sentence that can give an answer to 'why so?' in the very same argument becomes the conclusion. 

SENTENCE 1 -> It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. (WHY WAS IT WRONG OF MY BROTHER TO DO SO?

SENTENCE 2 -> Because saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party! 

Note that second sentence is used to back what is stated in the first sentence and not the other way round. Therefore, sentence 1 has to be the conclusion. 

STEP #3 ->  FRAME A SHADOW ANSWER

We know that the right answer should be the main conclusion drawn in Helen's argument. Therefore, the information contained in sentence 1 alone should form part of the correct answer. 

SHADOW ANSWER:  It was wrong of my brother Mark to have lied to our mother. 

STEP #4 -> ELIMINATE INCORRECT ANSWER OPTIONS

Answer options that do not match the shadow answer can be eliminated. 

(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth - NOT A MATCH - Well, we do know he lied, but the main conclusion is that it was wrong on his part to have lied. - ELIMINATE

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it - NOT A MATCH - Part of the premise, not conclusion. - ELIMINATE

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control - NOT A MATCH - A very creative answer option indeed! It is not validated by the argument nonetheless. Easy to eliminate! - ELIMINATE

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident - MATCHES THE SHADOW ANSWER - Mark's stating that he had missed their mother's birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident was a lie, and Helen concludes that it was wrong of him to do so. - KEEP

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth - NOT A MATCH - Part of the premise, not conclusion. - ELIMINATE

Hence, D is the correct answer.­
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 29 Jun 2024, 09:47
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Bmoreira1
I’m a bit confused, because I thought it would be E. I understand that answer E is vast, but she introduced the vastness in her argument by saying in her conclusion “Saying that something that is false can NEVER be other than morally wrong…”

Posted from my mobile device
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­You can perform what is called the 'WHY TEST'. I have just shared my explanation by the way. I hope it helps clear your confusion. :) 
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Quote:
Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the reason he had missed her birthday party the evening before was that he had been in a traffic accident and that by the time he was released from the hospital emergency room the party was long over. Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong, and there had been no such accident—Mark had simply forgotten all about the party.

The main conclusion drawn in Helen’s argument is that


(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth

(B) the real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it

(C) it is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control

(D) it was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident

(E) it is always wrong not to tell the truth
Show more

A. This is not the main conclusion, because it doesn’t bring up the moral issue. It’s a statement of what happened.
B. This is also a statement of what happened, according to Helen. It doesn’t include the moral issue, which is clearly important to her based on her claim that “ Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong...”
C. This one is very tempting. The only reason I think it’s not the best choice is that it’s not specific enough to Helen’s complaint because it doesn’t mention Mark.
D. This one is better. It’s more specific, and includes all of Helen’s high points: Mark lied, and lying is wrong, so Mark was wrong. It’s very close to the first sentence, but it’s more concise, which makes for a better conclusion.
E. This is also a bit tempting, but it’s not about Mark, so it’s not specific enough. Basically, what's the point of this argument? Is it that Helen wants to wax poetic about how wrong it is to lie, or is she complaining about her brother? Because it’s the latter, this choice isn’t the best.
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A. This is not the main conclusion, because it doesn’t bring up the moral issue. It’s a statement of what happened.
B. This is also a statement of what happened, according to Helen. It doesn’t include the moral issue, which is clearly important to her based on her claim that “ Saying something that is false can never be other than morally wrong...”
C. This one is very tempting. The only reason I think it’s not the best choice is that it’s not specific enough to Helen’s complaint because it doesn’t mention Mark.
D. This one is better. It’s more specific, and includes all of Helen’s high points: Mark lied, and lying is wrong, so Mark was wrong. It’s very close to the first sentence, but it’s more concise, which makes for a better conclusion.
E. This is also a bit tempting, but it’s not about Mark, so it’s not specific enough. Basically, what's the point of this argument? Is it that Helen wants to wax poetic about how wrong it is to lie, or is she complaining about her brother? Because it’s the latter, this choice isn’t the best.
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How to differentiate between B and D when conclusion is asked ?

"E" is more of a summary (as it also contains what Helen thinks) while option "B" seems to be the main conclusion drawn that he missed party as he forgot about it.

btw, congrats on a perfect GMAT Focus Score !
Please share link to your story and study plan if possible as well :P
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A_Nishith
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 07 Dec 2024, 11:36
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(A) Mark did not tell his mother the truth
This is a supporting statement in the argument but not the main conclusion. Helen mentions this to set up her argument that lying is morally wrong.

(B) The real reason Mark missed his mother’s birthday party was that he had forgotten all about it
This is a factual statement used to refute Mark's claim, but it is not the main point Helen is trying to establish.

(C) It is wrong to attempt to avoid blame for one’s failure to do something by claiming that one was prevented from doing that thing by events outside one’s control
This is not the focus of Helen's argument. While her argument implies this idea, her conclusion is broader and focuses on the wrongness of lying in this specific context.

(D) It was wrong of Mark to tell his mother that he had missed her birthday party as a result of having been in a traffic accident
This is the main conclusion of the argument. Helen explicitly states that Mark’s action was wrong because his claim was false and lying is always morally wrong.

(E) It is always wrong not to tell the truth
This is a general principle Helen uses to support her conclusion but is not the main conclusion itself.

Correct Answer: (D)
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saikrishna96
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Helen: It was wrong of my brother Mark to tell our mother that the rea 21 Sep 2025, 12:39
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My approach was to identify the intermediate conclusion in the argument (the premise and intermediate conclusion ALL lead to the main conclusion). By reading the stem, it becomes evident that Helen is using the rhetoric of lying being wrong to justify her main painpoint with Mark - That he is wrong.
7seven7

How to differentiate between B and D when conclusion is asked ?

"E" is more of a summary (as it also contains what Helen thinks) while option "B" seems to be the main conclusion drawn that he missed party as he forgot about it.

btw, congrats on a perfect GMAT Focus Score !
Please share link to your story and study plan if possible as well :P
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