Over the past six years, most of the students in Tupac city have

Question

Over the past six years, most of the students in Tupac city have regularly attended colleges in the neighbouring Mekon city to pursue their graduate degrees. However, according to a recent change in the education policies of Mekon city, the colleges in Mekon city are expected to increase their fees to almost the same level as those charged by colleges in Tupac city. Therefore, it can be safely concluded that colleges in Tupac city will see a surge in the number of students enrolling with them to pursue their graduate degrees.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends? 
(A) The teachers at colleges in Mekon city are generally considered better than those at colleges in Tupac city. 
(B) Tupac city does not have good quality colleges. 
(C) The low fees charged by colleges at Mekon city is the primary reason why students from Tupac city move to these colleges. 
(D) Students who study at colleges in Tupac city do not perform better than those who study at colleges in Mekon city. 
(E) Mekon city does not have more colleges than Tupac city.

Abhishek009 · Answer

Mekon Citu ↑ (Tution Fees ) = Tupac ↑ (Enrollment)

Now, Mekon Citu (Tution Fees ) = Tupac (Tution Fees )

Thus, ceteris paribus, (keeping other factors same), we conclude increase in enrolment of Tupac , so tution fees charged by Mekon city is the only criteria for higher student enrolment there, Answer must be (C)

CrackverbalGMAT · Answer

The right answer is  C . Since this question is asking us to support the conclusion, we must first ID that conclusion. In this case it is that " colleges in Tupac city ( represent! ) will see a surge in the number of students enrolling with them to pursue their graduate degrees ". The main premise that this is based on is that Mekon city is going to increase tuition, and a lot of Tupac-ians go to Mekon for university.
Hence, an assumption that this argument is based on would have to connect tuition price in Mekon to choosing where to study.

A  - If anything, this would not support the conclusion.  OUT

B  - Once again, if true this does not support the conclusion.  OUT

C  - If the low price in Mekon is the reason for students going there, then indeed, the premise and the conclusion are linked correctly.  CORRECT

D  - If this is the case, then why would changing the fees have any impact. Irrelevant and  OUT .

E  - The number of colleges is not linked to choosing to enroll at a place. The only oblique relationship is that this may impact tuition fees, but we already see that treated as a separate concept, so this would require a further assumption on our part.  OUT

- Matoo

Arthurito · Answer

My boy tupac finally got a city to his name

Posted from my mobile device

anshumanmalliwal · Answer

Is stating primary reason necessary? It is a sufficient condition, right?

Like, if the option said "atleast for some people of Tupac, college fees add a significant weight in choosing college" then is it more correct? As this will also lead to some surge, and its negation will completely break the argument.

Please guide, I'm really confused in finding necessary and sufficient condition in assumption CRs.

egmat · Answer

Assumption = Something that MUST be true for the argument to work

Think of it like a bridge:
 Argument says:  "It will rain tomorrow, so you should bring an umbrella."
 Hidden assumption:  "An umbrella protects you from rain"
Without that assumption, the advice makes no sense!

Necessary vs. Sufficient
  Let me explain with a simple example:
 You want to bake a cake.

NECESSARY ingredient:  Flour
 
 Without flour, you CANNOT make a cake 
 If I take away flour, your cake plan fails

SUFFICIENT ingredients:  Flour + eggs + sugar + butter + baking powder
 
 If you have ALL of these, you WILL make a cake (guaranteed)

See the difference? 
 
  NECESSARY  = Must have it (but might need other things too) 
  SUFFICIENT  = If you have it, you're done (guaranteed success)

In assumption questions, we look for NECESSARY things, not SUFFICIENT things.

The Argument: 
 
 Students go to Mekon because fees are lower 
 Mekon fees will increase to match Tupac fees 
 So students will have a SURGE going to Tupac  
 Answer C says:  "Low fees are the PRIMARY reason students go to Mekon"
 You asked:  "Why does it need to say PRIMARY? Isn't that too strong?"

Let Me Show You With A Pizza Example
 Imagine:  You always order from Pizza Hut instead of Domino's.

Scenario 1: PRIMARY reason 
 
 Pizza Hut costs $10 
 Domino's costs $15 
 You choose Pizza Hut 100% because it's cheaper 
 Both taste the same to you 
  What happens if both become $15?  You switch to Domino's (it's closer)

Scenario 2: NOT primary reason 
 
 Pizza Hut costs $10, Domino's costs $15 
 But you mainly choose Pizza Hut because it tastes MUCH better (that's 80% of your decision) 
 Price is only 20% of your decision 
  What happens if both become $15?  You STILL choose Pizza Hut (because taste matters more!)

See the difference? 
If price is PRIMARY → equalizing price changes your choice If price is NOT primary → equalizing price doesn't change much

Applying This To The Question
 The conclusion says:  There will be a SURGE (lots of students switching)

For a SURGE to happen: 
 
 Fees must be the MAIN reason students chose Mekon 
 Not just "a reason" or "matters to some people"

Let's test: 
 If fees are PRIMARY (70% of decision): 
 
 When fees become equal → Most students switch → SURGE ✓  
 If fees are just "significant" (20% of decision): 
 
 Main reason is better quality (70%) 
 When fees become equal → Quality still matters more → Students stay at Mekon → NO surge ✗  
 The word "PRIMARY" is NECESSARY because the argument predicts a SURGE.

Your Second Question: "At Least For Some People"
 You suggested:  "What if fees matter to at least SOME people? That should work, right?"

Let me show you why that's too weak: 
 Example: 
Your school has 1,000 students going to Mekon.
 Version 1: "Fees are primary reason for students" 
 
 Fees matter most to 800 students 
 When fees equalize → 800 might switch 
 That's a SURGE ✓  
 Version 2: "Fees matter to at least some students" 
 
 Fees matter to 50 students 
 When fees equalize → 50 might switch 
 Is 50 out of 1,000 a "surge"? NO ✗  
 Your version is necessary  (if you remove it, argument fails)
 But it's TOO WEAK  (it doesn't support a "SURGE")

The Negation Test 
 To check if something is necessary, flip it to negative: 
 Answer C:  "Fees ARE the primary reason"
 Flip it:  "Fees are NOT the primary reason"
 What happens? 
 
 Something else (quality, programs) is the main reason 
 That other thing still favors Mekon after price change 
 No surge happens 
  Argument breaks!  ✓  
 This proves C is necessary.

Back To Necessary vs. Sufficient
 You asked:  "Isn't 'primary' sufficient, not necessary?"
 No! Here's why: 
 Remember the cake example?

NECESSARY (must have):  Flour  SUFFICIENT (guaranteed success):  All ingredients + recipe + oven

In this question: 
 NECESSARY (must be true):  Fees are primary reason 
 SUFFICIENT (guaranteed surge):  Fees are primary reason + Tupac colleges have space + Tupac colleges are decent quality + students know about the fee change + other factors

"Primary reason" is just ONE necessary piece. It doesn't guarantee success (that would be sufficient). 
 But without it, the argument definitely fails (that's why it's necessary).

The Simple Rule
   When the conclusion is STRONG (like "surge"), the assumption must be STRONG too. 
 Weak conclusion:  "A few students might switch" → Weak assumption okay: "Fees matter to some people"
 Strong conclusion:  "There will be a SURGE"
 → Strong assumption needed: "Fees are the PRIMARY reason"
 Think of it like: 
 
 Big claim needs big support 
 "SURGE" is a big claim 
 "Primary reason" is big support 
 "Some people" is weak support for a big claim

Over the past six years, most of the students in Tupac city have

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