Bar Graph questions – Data Interpretation or DI is one of the dominating sections in any MBA entrance exam. It assesses a candidate’s interpreting & analyzing ability. The data can be in unstructured form. Few examples of these questions are Income- Expenditure question, Population growth, market share, class groups etc. One of the most important forms of presenting data in this section is through Bar graph Questions.
CAT Data Interpretation Questions often presents questions in the form of pie charts and graphs. Each CAT Data Interpretation caselet contains 4 questions. Therefore, it is not an option to take this topic lightly as it may make all the difference.
Year | No of Questions | Good attempt | Level of Difficulty | |
Slot 1 | 4 | 3 | High | |
Slot 2 | 0 | 0 | – | |
Slot 1 | 0 | 0 | – | |
Slot 2 | 0 | 0 | – |
The Bar graph questions in NMAT usually range from moderate to difficult level. However, the number of questions is significantly high and so should not be ignored.
Year | No of Questions | Good attempt | Level of Difficulty |
2020 | 4 | 3 | Moderate |
2019 | 8 | 5-6 | Moderate to High |
Calculation of absolute values when given numbers or vice versa.
Percentage increase or decrease – Data will be given for 2 different time-period and then the candidate needed to calculate the percentage change.
Simple bar graph – This is the most basic concept of bar graphs. It shows the relationship between one discrete and one continuous variable. Ex: Revenue generated in a company for over 5 years.
Composite or stacked bar graph – It is a little complex representation of data related to the continuous variable and its sub-group. Ex: Manufacturing of different flavours of ice cream in a company for over 4 years.
Deviation bar graph – Candidates may be presented with profit and loss of a company in 10 years and then asked questions around it.
Bar graph with other graphs – Many times, CAT, XAT, IIFT, etc like to give questions with multiple charts while presenting data in the form of bar graph along with pie chart, line graph, table etc.
XAT 2020: The following graph depicts sector-wise percentage contributions to the gross domestic product (GDP) of nine nations, labelled “Nation A”, “Nation B” and so on. It is known that these nations are Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, the UK and the USA, but not necessarily in the same order.
The following, however, are known:
i) The GDPs of the nine nations (in US $ trillion) are:
ii) China has the highest agriculture sector GDP, valued at US $1 trillion, followed respectively by the USA and India iii) In terms of percentage contribution to the respective nations’ GDPs by their service sectors, the UK and France are respectively the first and the second iv) Nation A, Nation B and Nation G have the same GDP v) The GDP of India’s industry sector is lower than the GDP of Russia’s industry sector. However, it is larger than that of Brazil’s industry sector
1. Based on the given information, how many nations can be uniquely identified?
A 6
B 9
C 3
D 2
E 7
2. Based on the given information, which of the following CANNOT be ruled out?
A US is Nation I
B Russia is Nation G
C China is Nation C
D Japan is Nation E
E India is Nation B
3. Which of the following information, when considered in addition to the given information, does not allow us to completely identify the nine nations in the graph?
A Germany’s industry GDP is US $1.2 trillion
B The nation ranked fourth in terms of agriculture GDP has its agriculture GDP valued at US $150 billion
C In terms of percentage contribution to the respective nations’ GDP, France and Japan’s agriculture sectors contribute the same
D Japan’s industry GDP is US $1.25 trillion E Both Japan’s and Germany’s industry GDPs are more than US $1 trillion
1. Based on the given information, how many nations can be uniquely identified?
A 6
B 9
C 3
D 2
E 7
Answer: A
2. Based on the given information, which of the following CANNOT be ruled out?
A US is Nation I
B Russia is Nation G
C China is Nation C
D Japan is Nation E
E India is Nation B
Answer: D
3. Which of the following information, when considered in addition to the given information, does not allow us to completely identify the nine nations in the graph?
A Germany’s industry GDP is US $1.2 trillion
B The nation ranked fourth in terms of agriculture GDP has its agriculture GDP valued at US $150 billion
C In terms of percentage contribution to the respective nations’ GDP, France and Japan’s agriculture sectors contribute the same
D Japan’s industry GDP is US $1.25 trillion E Both Japan’s and Germany’s industry GDPs are more than US $1 trillion
Answer: A.
To prepare for Bar graph Questions, here are some Level-wise preparatory guidelines to follow
Level – 3
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