Passing marks from a fail margin — Aptitude Question
Passing marks from a fail margin: A student scored 240 marks and failed by 30 marks. If the pass mark is 45% of the… Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Percentages
- Section: Quantitative Aptitude
- Difficulty: Easy
- Time target: 45 seconds
Question
A student scored 240 marks and failed by 30 marks. If the pass mark is 45% of the total, what is the total?
Options
- 500
- 540
- 600
- 650
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: C. 600
Worked solution
- Passing marks = 240 + 30 = 270.
- 45% of total = 270, so total = 270 ÷ 0.45 = 600.
Answer: 600.
The idea
Turn the story into one equation: the pass mark is both a percentage of the total and a known number. Then divide. Check the answer by taking 45% of it.
Shortcut. The pass mark is 240 + 30 = 270 = 45%; 270 ÷ 45 = 6 per 1%, so 100% is 600.
Common trap. 540 — the nearest option to 240 ÷ 0.45 ≈ 533, which is what forgetting to add the 30 missing marks gives.