Official ExplanationJoining activities
among animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas as they have in most cities.
A. among animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas as they have B. in rural areas among animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed as they didC. between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas asD. in rural areas between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed as they have E. between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas as they didThis question addresses the difference between “among” and “between.” “Between” refers to two things, while “among” refers to three or more things. Since the sentence only discusses two things, we need to eliminate any options that use “among.” It also addresses parallelism with the past tense verb “progressed,” so let’s focus on that as well.
A. among animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas as they have This is
INCORRECT. There are only two items, so among is not the appropriate word. Also using “as they have” does not use the past tense. A verb parallel with “progressed” needs to be used.
B. in rural areas among animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed as they didThis is
INCORRECT. There are only two items, so among is not the appropriate word. It does handle the progressed/as they did properly, but that’s not enough to make this our correct choice.
C. between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas asThis is
INCORRECT. Using “as” does not make it clear that it happened in the past. A past tense verb parallel with “progressed” needs to be used.
D. in rural areas between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed as they haveThis is
INCORRECT. Using “as they have” does not use the past tense. A verb parallel with “progressed” needs to be used.
E. between animal shelters and correctional facilities never progressed in rural areas as they didThis is
CORRECT. Between is used correctly and “as they did,” is the past tense making it parallel with “progressed.”
There you have it - option E is our answer!Don’t study for the GMAT. Train for it.