What was the median annual salary for the employees at Compan

Solution

To find:

• The median annual salary for the employees at Company X last year

Analysing Statement 1

• As per the information given in statement 1, last year there were 29 employees at Company X

o From this statement, we find no information about the salaries of any of those 29 employees
o Hence, we can’t find out the median annual salary

Hence, statement 1 is not sufficient to answer the question

Analysing Statement 2

• As per the information given in statement 2, last year 12 employees at Company X had an annual salary of $24,000

o From this statement, we don’t find complete information about the salaries of all the employees

Hence, statement 2 is not sufficient to answer the question

Combining Both Statements
If we combine the information given in both the statements, we can write:

• Last year there were 29 employees at Company X
• Out of those 29 employees, 12 employees at Company X had an annual salary of $24,000

Even after combining the statements, we don’t find complete information about the salaries of all the employees

Hence, the correct answer is option E.

Answer: E

and Dedicated Data Sufficiency (DS) Course

Answer: Option E

Video solution by GMATinsight



Get TOPICWISE: Concept Videos | Practice Qns 100+ | Official Qns 50+ | 100% Video solution CLICK HERE.
Two MUST join YouTube channels : GMATinsight (1000+ FREE Videos) and GMATclub

Solution:


Question Stem Analysis:

We need to determine the median annual salary for the employees at Company X last year.

Statement One Alone:

Knowing the number of employees at the company does not allow us to determine the median annual salary of the company. Statement one alone is not sufficient.

Statement Two Alone:

Knowing the salaries of 12 employees does not allow us to determine the median annual salary of the company. Statement two alone is not sufficient.

Statements One and Two Together:

Knowing both the number of employees at the company and the salaries of some of the employees still does not allow us to determine the median annual salary of the company. For example, here we know there were a total of 29 employees at the company and the salaries of 12 of them. If these 12 employees (who each made $24,000 last year) were at the low-end or the high-end of all salaries, then we can’t determine the median salary since the median salary of 29 employees should be the 15th highest of all salaries. However, if the 12 employees were in the “middle of the pack,” then the median salary would be $24,000. Thus, we see that both statements together are not sufficient.

Answer: E

Hello from the GMAT Club BumpBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.