GRE Quants - Sample Questions

Quantitative Comparisons


7x² = 21

Column A --> x

Column B --> 2

• A. The quantity in Column A is greater
• B. The quantity in Column B is greater
• C. The two quantities are equal
• D. The relationship cannot be determined from the information given

Answer: B


Problem Solving

In the fig shown, if CP=BP and x=120, then y=

• A. 30
• B. 45
• C. 60
• D. 75
• E. 90

Answer: C


Data Interpretation

In which of the following years did the number of graduate student applications increase the most from that of the previous year?

• A. 1985
• B. 1986
• C. 1988
• D. 1990
• E. 1991

Answer: B

QUANTITATIVE SECTION - STRATEGIES AND QUESTION TYPES

The Quantitative section can have questions only of these three types. They are :

• Quantitative Comparisons
• Problem Solving
• Data Interpretation

Quantitative Comparisons

It measures your ability to :

• Determine the relative sizes of two quantities
• Perceive that not enough information is provided to make such a decision

Problem Solving

Each of the questions GRE Math problem solving is followed by five answer choices. You have to select the best of the answer options given. This tests your :

• Knowledge of maths involving percentages, simultaneous equations, polygons, probability, etc.
• Ability to read, understand, and solve problems quickly and accurately.

Data Interpretations

This is the toughest section in GRE Math. Many have poor Math scores because of the high difficulty of Data interpretation GRE questions. Practice with lots of tough DI questions to do get a good GRE Math score. Data interpretation in GRE Math section measures your ability to:

• Read and interpret data
• Perform statistical calculations on the data provided

The data interpretation questions in GRE Math usually appear in sets and are based on data presented in tables or graphs.

STRATEGIES

1. Quantitative Comparisons

• Convert algebraic expressions to a standard form
• Avoid calculations such as how much larger or smaller one quantity is than the other.
• Do not assume all variables represent positive integers - be aware of negative numbers, fractions, and zero as possible numbers.
• Geometric figures are not always drawn to scale, so do not make assumptions simply based on the appearance of a figure given
  

2.Problem Solving

The basic strategies are :

• Determine what is given and what is being asked
• Scan options to decide the level of approximation required
• Avoid long computations
• Scan all options before answering a question

3.Data Interpretation

The strategies to be adopted are :

• Look carefully at the data and understand how it is presented
• Try to make visual comparisons and estimate products and quotients rather than perform computations.
• For graphs, pay attention to the scales as well as read any accompanying notes
• Answer questions only on the basis of data given.

QUANTS SECTION

Hello Everyone, I think we had enough of verbal section, and its high time we need to know something about Quantitative section. In the previous section, we discussed about the strategies to solve, or make the verbal section easier by following some key ideas. Finally, we even saw some Sample Questions which can be solved through those key points to get the desired answer.Like verbal section, it is also graded on a scale of 200-800, in 10 point increments. In a quantitative section, you may have 28 questions, every test taker is ensured that he has 45 minutes to complete the section.

Now, moving ahead to this section, which involves basically good mathematical skills of higher secondary levels. It starts from the great 'Srinivasa Ramanujam' and the inherits from him are passed on to us, so basically we Indians are proud to say that maths is in our blood. This makes us very special when it comes to GRE quants section since it is relatively easier.

We will move further into the Quantitative section and it needs to cover these topics:

• Arithmetic
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Data Analysis

Arithmetic

The arithmetic is a vast topic which includes the following :

• Arithmetic Operations
• Powers
• Radical Expressions
• Estimation
• Percent
• Absolute Value
• Number Property
  
• Factoring

Algebra

The algebra has the following sub-topics:

• Exponential Rules
• Factoring and Simplifying
• Relations and Functions
• First and Second degree equations
  
• Simultaneous equations
• Word Problems

Geometry

The geometry is classified into:

• Parallel lines
• Circles
• Triangles
• Rectangles
• Other Polygons
• Area
• Perimeter
• Volume
• Pythagoras Theorem
• Angles
• Co-ordinate Geometry

Data Analysis

The data analysis involves with:

• Basic Probability
  
• Basic Statistics
• Mean
• Median
• Mode
• Range
• Standard Deviation
• Percentiles
• Data Interpretation
• Line Graphs
• Bar Graphs
• Circle Graphs
• Frequency Distributions

Lets see what are the type of questions asked in this section in the coming posts and how to tackle them. See you later.