文档内容
SMU Classification: Restricted
Disclaimer
The answers below are meant to suggest optimal strategies for attempting the different question types faced in
the SMU Admissions Test, and are not necessarily all correct. For the test above, the results were >90th
percentile in both Verbal and Numerical Reasoning, and >80th percentile in Inductive Reasoning.
* * *
General Guidelines – Verbal Reasoning
- Sometimes, the statement in the question is a simple paraphrasing of text in the passage. It helps to have a
good vocabulary.
- Watch out for words such as “always”, “some”, or “all” – they may change the context of a fact mentioned in
the passage.
- It is important not to let information or knowledge outside the passage influence your answers, as the task
here is to evaluate information within the context of the passage. E.g. if the passage claims that global
warming is false, even if you personally hold it to be true, it is still “false”.
Suggested Answers – Verbal Reasoning
Q1: True
Explicitly stated as first line of passage, students need to be aware that “flora” refers to plant life.
Q2: False
Last line of passage states that even in optimal conditions, some seeds are reluctant to sprout.
Q3: True
Passage states that rate of germination can drop after being packaged for more than a year. Students needs to
be aware that “germination” is sprouting.
Q4: Cannot Say
Nothing in the passage draws a correlation between the affluence of the location and the dedication of
volunteers.
Q5: True
The lack of security cameras and bar codes is explicitly stated as the usual reason why charity shops are
particularly susceptible to theft.
Q6: False
It is explicitly stated that having a group of dedicated volunteers is of fundamental importance, in order to
promote financial prosperity. Location is obviously not the only factor.
Q7: Cannot Say
While the passage states Europe, there is no comparison drawn with any other society, so we do not know if
Europe is more or less concerned.
Q8: True
It is explicitly stated that GM foods contribute to the fight against world hunger.
Q9: Cannot Say
Although the passage brings up both pros and cons of GM foods, there is no direct comparison or weighing of the
two, so we cannot reliably deduce if one outweighs the other.
Q10: Cannot Say
While the passage does say that specialist agencies have multilingual staff, there is nothing to suggest that only
specialist agencies employ them.SMU Classification: Restricted
Q11: False
The passage explicitly states that while the holiday market has grown in the past decade, the number of agencies
has declined.
Q12: True
The passage explicitly states that the specialised knowledge of staff can provide good deals and lower prices to
customers.
Q13: False
Ensuring that flames have maximum luminosity is one way to aid minimisation of fuel consumption – students
need to understand that radiance and luminosity both refer to the flame’s brightness are so are synonymous.
Q14: Cannot Say
Amongst the many factors raised which can affect glass quality, temperature is not included. As such we cannot
reliably tell the effect of temperature on quality.
Q15: False
The passage explicitly states that exploiting advanced research is important to retain commercial standing.
Q16: Cannot Say
The passage states that the current focus is the development of low-cost renewable energy, but there is no
indication of whether this is meant to be carbon-based or not.
Q17: Cannot Say
Although the passage states that both fauna (animals) and flora (plants) will be affected, there is no comparison
on whether these impacts are equal.
Q18: False
The economic incentive to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy is stated as crucial for slowing the rate of
climate change.
Q19: Cannot Say
While staff in organisations with work-life balance strategies may be more motivated, it does not necessarily
mean that the organisations recruit more motivated people.
Q20: False
An improvement in employee motivation is explicitly stated as one factor that could offset the cost of a flexible
working strategy, meaning employers would consider it a reason to implement such strategies despite the cost.
Q21: False
It is explicitly stated that a reduction in absenteeism is a result of implementing work-life balance strategies, not
removing such strategies.
Q22: False
It is stated that earthquakes remain a potential threat despite the increased sophistication of bridges.
Q23: Cannot Say
Although self-anchored suspension bridges are mentioned as a promising solution to earthquake damage, there
is no confirmation that they are the established solution. There may be other solutions not mentioned in the
passage.
Q24: Cannot Say
The major vulnerability of a bridge to earthquake damage is mentioned to be its supporting structures – there is
no correlation to the bridge span distance mentioned.SMU Classification: Restricted
Q25: Cannot Say
While dirty nails are mentioned as one negative example, there is no mention of hospital legislation restricting
this. There is no clarity on what any hospital legislation may or may not cover.
Q26: Cannot Say
Although red is not a recommended colour for doctors, there is no comparison against other colours, so we
cannot reliably state that blue is preferred.
Q27: False
The passage explicitly states that the potential new legislation is an effect of the current media trend, not the
other way around.
Q28: False
The passage claims that for most people, hypnosis means people doing things out of character. Since the
question statement is “few people”, this is obviously False.
Q29: Cannot Say
Although research over the last few decades have revealed new findings, there is no confirmation that it only
started then. It may, for instance, have started more than a century ago with only the last few decades yielding
results.
Q30: Cannot Say
There is no confirmation on what types of activities people under hypnosis actually participate in, so we cannot
reliably say if they are entertaining or not.SMU Classification: Restricted
General Guidelines – Numerical Reasoning
- The priority for this section is speed. A quick, informed guess after eliminating a few choices is almost
always better than a lengthy, tedious working out of the correct answer.
- For questions which require comparison of five different teams/ companies/ etc. (e.g. Q1, Q3, Q7), it is
usually possible to eliminate some choices by a quick visual observation. Doing so can save a lot of time
over the 18 questions.
Suggested Answers – Numerical Reasoning
Q1: (E) Aurore
Straightforward calculation, but can save time by doing mental calculation of rounded numbers, e.g. Hardlow is
approximately 10/40 = 1:4 ratio, Xiang is approximately 2/25 = 1:8, etc. Aurore is obviously highest with almost
1:2.
Q2: (C) 7,761
Proceeds of a sale of 3,500 Hardlow shares nets 3,500 x 108p, and dividing by Aurore share price gets 7,761
shares.
Q3: (D) IKO Inc
Quick visual observation shows that Hardlow and GRT cannot be lowest, and rough calculation of the remaining
companies should give the answer.
Q4: (E) $224m
20% decrease per year from Y+2 to Y+4 is simply $350m x 80% x 80% = $224m.
Q5: (D) 16%
The total projected consumer goods import for Y+1 is 420 + 80 = 500, so UK’s share of it is 80/500 = 16%.
Q6: (B) 33%
Combined imports in Y are 450 + 90 = 540. Combined imports in Y+4 are 300 + 60 = 360. Simple percentage
calculation will give a 33% decrease.
Q7: (C) E323
To save time, it is possible to conduct a quick visual scan – good candidates are G02F (decent profit and number
of units sold), E323 (so-so profit but sold a lot of units), and maybe S365 (very high profit, almost as many sold
as G20F). Multiply profit per unit by total units sold per model to get answer.
Q8: (D) 4 years
At 10,000 miles per year, a customer would use 312.5 gallons of fuel with a G02F, and 370.3 gallons with a
F326. This means a price difference of £274.55 per year. Since the difference in retail prices of the two models is
only £1,032, the cost will be recovered in 4 years.
Q9: (C) E323
Obvious candidates have to be either E323 (same fuel cost as G02F and F326, highest miles per gallon) or G636
(same fuel cost as S365, higher miles per gallon). Simply take 200 divided by miles per gallon, and multiply by
fuel cost to get answer.
Q10: (A) Xiao
Straight forward summation of sales per product for all 5 staff members. Possible to speed up by observing first
that Xiao, having the most sales in Product A and C, and 2nd most in Product B, is the most likely candidate
anyway.
Q11: (C) £874.60
Straight forward summation of profit of all staff, then multiplying by 5% to get answer. Can save time by realizing
that commission to Xiao (mostly likely generating the most profit) is £193.20. This eliminates (A), (D), and (E). (C)
seems likelier as commission of remaining 4 staff should not be that little.SMU Classification: Restricted
Q12: (C) Product C
Straight forward summation of profit figures per product. Possible to save time by observing that Products A and
C are likeliest candidates.
Q13: (C) Southern
Need to understand that capital for a region is the number of houses (private + state owned) multiplied by
average value of a house. Since each region’s average price increases by only 10% from left to right on the
chart, a visual comparison should suffice. Southern region has more homes than Northern or Midland, and higher
average price, so must have higher capital. Southern region also seems to have more than enough homes than
Eastern and Western to offset 10% increments of average price. Can verify with tedious calculation but would not
bother.
Q14: (A) Northern
Straight forward calculation of population (in millions) divided by total number of houses per region. Suggest to do
rough calculations to save time (e.g. Northern density roughly 16 divided by 11, etc). Take note to eliminate
Eastern and Western to save time since they have lower population and more homes than Northern, no point
calculating.
Q15: (C) Southern
Straight forward calculation of stated-owned houses divided by private houses per region.
Q16: (E) 430
Straight forward but tedious calculation. Identify the hours worked by staff from each time, then calculate the total
man-hours contributed by each line. Divide by the man hours needed per car from line A to get the answer.
Q17: (D) Agricultural
If production cost per hour is constant, then product with highest retail cost or lowest man-hours needed are most
probable candidates for most profitable. This shortlists the choices to Agricultural or Off-Road (the other products
either take too many hours or have low retail costs), can do a straight forward calculation to get (D).
Q18: (A) 11
Two parts – firstly to identify which line is not meeting targets, then to identify how far they are from target.
Straight forward but tedious calculation.SMU Classification: Restricted
General Guidelines – Inductive Reasoning
- As a compromise between speed and accuracy, break each picture down into its components and try to
identify just one or two consistent patterns for the components. In a picture with 5 shapes, for instance, it is
seldom necessary to understand the pattern for all 5 shapes.
- This section is relatively subjective – it is unlikely to see much improvement even with repeated practice. It is
more rewarding to focus on improving scores in the Verbal and Numerical sections.
Suggested Answers – Inductive Reasoning
Q1: B
The shape in the top right corner cycles between circle, square, triangle, and back again. The shape in the
bottom left corner cycles between diamond, triangle, square, and back again. The shape which is shaded black
alternates between each picture. By these rules, the next in the sequence should be B.
Q2: B
The middle horizontal line flips sides first, followed by the bottom line, then the top. As such, the next picture
should show the bottom horizontal line flipping back, which is B.
Q3: E
The empty corner moves clockwise over the sequence, so the next picture should have an empty corner in the
bottom right. Based on this alone, E is the only possible choice.
Q4: D
The circle on top seems to move from left to right, switching colour after 3 pictures. The circle on the bottom does
the same, but in the opposite direction. By this rule, the next picture should have a white circle in the top right,
and a black circle in the bottom left. The only choices that match these are A and D. Between the 1st and 4th
picture, the crescents occupy the same spots, but change colours. This also applies between 2nd and 5th picture.
Assuming the same rule applies to 3rd and 6th picture, D should be the correct answer.
Q5: D
Starting from the leftmost picture, one quadrant moves 45° in each step, while the other moves 45° every two
steps. Based on this, the next picture should be D.
Q6: B
Two identifiable rules: the triangle moves clockwise across the sequence, while the empty corner seems to
change every steps. As such, in the next picture the triangle should be in the top-right corner, and the empty
square remains bottom-right. Only B fits this criteria.
Q7: E
The line in the bottom circle gets removed from the shape in the top circle after every iteration. Based on this
logic, the next picture in the top circle should be E.
Q8: A
The overall shape cycles between circle, square, then diamond. Next picture should be a diamond (either A or
C). The black quadrant moves clockwise every step, and the grey quadrant moves clockwise every 2 steps. By
these rules, the next picture must be A.
Q9: C
Between each pair of pictures, the circles switch colours, so the next picture should have a white circle in top
right, and the rest black (A or C). The middle rectangle alternates between white and black, so it should be black
in the next picture (C only).
Q10: C
The largest circle moves from right to left and back again, so it should be in the middle in the next picture (A or
C).SMU Classification: Restricted
Q11: B
If one imagines the arrow pivoting about its ends, then the next picture is B (it pivots about the end without the
arrowhead).
Q12: A
The dot alternates from moving anti-clockwise (pictures 1, 2, 4, etc) and moving clockwise (pictures 1, 3, 5, etc).
By this logic, the next picture should show it in the bottom-right corner.
Q13: C
The diagonal line alternates between / and \, so it should be \ in the next picture (B, C, or D). The ratio of shapes
seems to cycle from 1:2, to 2:3, to 3:1 and back again, suggesting that the next picture should have a total of 5
shapes. Only C fits this criteria.
Q14: A
The circle moves clockwise in each step, and the cross moves anti-clockwise every two steps. By these rules, the
next picture must be A.
Q15: C
Identifying the movement patterns of the circle and cross individually, it is fairly obvious that the next picture in
the sequence must be C.
Q16: A
Q17: B
Q18: D
The number of light-grey cells alternates between 1 and 2. Based on this, the next picture should have two light-
grey cells, and only D meets this criteria.
Q19: C
Q20: E
Q21: D
Q22: D
Q23:lA
Q24: A
