TANCET Prep Qn: Ratio Proportion

Ratio proportion is a fundamental topic from which you should expect anything from 2 to 3 questions out of the 20 questions in the Math section of TANCET MBA test.

The following question is a ratio question and tests your ability to express one term in terms of another, given the ratio between the two terms.

Question
Sum of the ages of three friends is 98 years. If the ratio of the ages of the oldest to the middle is 5 : 3 and that of the middle to the youngest is 5 : 3, how old is the oldest?
1. 49 years
2. 50 years
3. 30 years
4. 32 years
5. 42 years

The correct answer is 50 years. i.e., Choice (2).

Explanatory Answer
One of the easiest approach to solve this question is outlined below

Let A be the oldest, B the middle one and C the youngest amongst the three friends.
Ratio of the ages of A and B, A : B :: 5 : 3
i.e., A/B = 5/3
Therefore, A = (5/3) B

Ratio of the ages of B and C, B : C :: 5 : 3
i.e, B/C = 5/3.
Hence, C = (3/5)B

We also know that A + B + C = 98

Rewriting the equation in terms of B, we get (5/3)B + B + (3/5)B = 98.
Taking 15 as the common denominator and adding we get (25B + 15B + 9B)/15 = 98
Or (49/15)B = 98
Or B = (98*15)/49 = 30.

Hence, age of A = (5/3)B = (5/3)*30 = 50 years.

Various alternative formats of the same question exist. Some oft repeated questions are given at the Ratio Proportion Practice Question Set.

TANCET Math prep question - Linear Equations

Linear Equations is one of the fundamental topics from which you could expect one or two questions in the TANCET test.

A Linear Equation is one in which the power or the exponent of the variable is 1. An equation of the form 3x + 2y = 17 is a linear equation.

A linear equation in two variables x and y represents a straight line when plotted on a x - y plane. The equation of the x-axis is y = 0 and that of the y-axis is x = 0.

The following question is a word problem in linear equation. You will be presented some information as a statement and you will be expected to fram linear equation based on the information provided there and solve the linear equation to get the answer.

Question
QuestionRam's father is thrice as old as Ram. 6 years hence, his father will be 24 years older than Ram. How old is Ram?
1. 24 years
2. 18 years
3. 12 years
4. 36 years
5. 42 years

Correct Answer and Explanation
Let Ram's present age be R.
So, his father's present age is 3R.

6 years hence, Ram will be (R + 6) years old
6 years hence, Ram's father will be 3R + 6 years old.
The question states that 6 years hence, Ram's father is 24 years older than Ram.
i.e., 3R + 6 = (R + 6) + 24

Or 3R + 6 = R + 30
or 2R = 24 or R = 12.
Ram's present age is therefore 12 years.

Shortcut Approach
You should actually solve this question by going back from the answer choices. That way, you will save a lot of time. Anyone who is serious about cracking the TANCET should commence your preparation for the TANCET exam not later than the day your fifth semester exams are over if you are in a 3-year degree program or after your seventh semester exam gets over if you are in a 4-year degree program.

Weekly Math prep question for TANCET MBA

I will periodically post interesting questions similar to those that are tested in the TANCET MBA and TANCET MCA tests.

As you are aware a fifth (i.e.,) 20 questions out of the 100 questions in the TANCET MBA paper is the math or the quant section. And about 60 questions out of the 100 questions in TANCET MCA paper is the math or the quant section.

The math that is tested in both the TANCET MBA and TANCET MCA sections are 10th standard level math.

Be assured that you will not see any of the 12th standard level math questions such as Calculus, Matrices, Vectors etc., as this exam is open to even students who would not have taken math in class 12.

In effect, what TANCET math tests is Arithmetic, Basic Algebra, Geometry topics. For good measure get yourself acquainted with Modern math topics such as Permutation Combination and Probability and Set theory if you want to score high in this section.

TANCET Exam is conducted in the second or third week of May every year. If you are keen on cracking the test, then you should start your TANCET Preparation about 3 to 6 months before the test date.