What is Data Sufficiency and why is it important for GMAT takers?If you are keen on taking the GMAT or if you have already appeared for the test, you would have realized that Data Sufficiency (DS) is a question type that’s unique to the GMAT.
It was introduced by the GMAT when it was in its infancy. The fact that it has remained a part of the test till date is testimony to the fact that it is the backbone of the Quant section of the GMAT.
In some ways, DS questions can be considered a tool to measure your managerial skills. If you come to think of it, they are trying to see if you have all the necessary implements required to solve a problem; I’m sure you will face such situations in real life after you get out of a B-school.
That’s probably why GMAT has persisted with this model of questions which has paid off for the test. Think about it for a second, when you think of DS, you naturally associate it with the GMAT and not any other test! You can’t separate one from the other.
The moment you look at DS questions from this perspective, you will start appreciating the importance of it in the GMAT. And once that happens, you have already started off on a positive note when it comes to prepping for the DS questions.
What makes DS challenging?To start off with, a major problem is your own perception; DS is perceived, by a lot of students, to be harder than the more conventional Problem- Solving model of questions.
But is it so? Let us have a closer look at it.
There is no denying that DS can be a hard nut to crack, especially when you are starting off with your preparation for the GMAT. DS questions on topics like Numbers, Probability, Inequalities and Geometry constitute a deadly combo which can trouble the best of the best. Why is this so? Here are a few possible explanations:
There is an element of reasoning (almost always) involved in solving a DS question
It requires you to use a lot of common sense and logic in arriving at an answer
DS questions do not have values/numbers given as answer options, which makes them harder to solve because you cannot leverage the answer options
In a lot of cases, depending on Math concepts alone will not be sufficient to answer the question.
Because of all this, the going gets tough if you rely on Math alone to help you solve a DS question (which is the bane of a lot of students who face difficulty in solving DS questions).
Due to this reason, we always maintain that DS questions are a little like Critical Reasoning questions. You need to put on your reasoning hat along with the Math one.
Can DS questions be a boon to students?So here’s another way to look at DS questions. DS gives you the opportunity to save time by not expecting an exact answer on all questions. And guess what, this is a blessing in disguise – on a question, even if you have made a silly mistake and got a wrong answer, you don’t have to worry as long as you have got a definite, unique answer.
You do not have this flexibility on a Problem- Solving question because it demands that you give ONE EXACT value as the answer. So, for students who are prone to making silly/careless calculation errors, DS questions are actually a boon.
How can you prepare for DS questions?Not getting past the 50% accuracy rate? You don’t have to worry about it during the initial few days. Here are a few ways in which you can improve your DS questions answering skills and then who knows, you might actually be a pro at it.
Focus on learning the rules of the game – these are of paramount importance. Learn the strategies for solving DS questions -- eliminating answer options, breaking down the question stem, plugging in etc. -- because these will be immensely useful for you throughout your preparation on DS questions.
Start off by solving the simpler questions from
the Official GuideThis will help you to experience how the statements are framed, understand the sort of traps laid out in them and figure out what answers are accepted and what are not.
As you progress, you will see that the harder DS questions are questions where there are multiple concepts tested. You will realize that there are multiple traps laid out. You will just have to bring in your experience to get past these traps to find your way to the right answer.
What’s in it for you?You will gain immense satisfaction and confidence if you solve the harder DS questions.If we keep the subjective angle aside, there are gains to be made on the score front as well.
We have analyzed score reports of our students who have taken the GMAT over the years and they all tell us one simple thing - performing well on DS questions has a direct impact on your Quant score.
People who score upwards of 49 are people who have a high accuracy rate on DS questions. On the contrary, people who fall in the 44 to 47 bracket are people who definitely messed up on a lot of DS questions.
So, if you decide to ignore Data Sufficiency, do so at your own peril. But you might want to think twice about this?
How can CrackVerbal help?Right from its inception, CrackVerbal’s founding mantra has been to be with students and to guide them. We have always asked our students to stick to official content if they want to perform well on a standardized test like the GMAT.
As such, you will see that our content has also been designed keeping the official content in mind. The concepts, short cut techniques and strategies that we give out to students have been developed after years of research and after solving and teaching official GMAT questions to our students.
Want to check out our resources and content? Here are a few resources for you to access and experience our content and pedagogy.
Can I do well on the DS without buying CrackVerbal’s course?Sure, why not! Our founding objective has been to help students realize their dream score on the GMAT. So, we would not like to withhold important resources that can benefit students. We also give out free resources frequently.
If you really want to dwell on DS, the first hurdle that you need to overcome is the basics of DS. You need to completely understand it and be thorough with it. To help you with this, we are happy to provide you with this Quick Reference document on GMAT Data Sufficiency. **
Specific concepts in Quant will require you to know specific strategies for DS questions. Discussing them is not within the scope of this article. You can learn the strategies as you prepare.
As of now, you can
go ahead and download this free resource and get started with your practice on DS questions.We would also like to give you
Free access to our GMAT Quant Basics Course