Advanced Data Interpretation — Worked Practice
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4A.1 A Fully Worked Bar Graph Set
A company's annual sales (in ₹ lakh) over five years were: 2021 — 120; 2022 — 150; 2023 — 180; 2024 — 210; 2025 — 240. The total sales across all five years = 120+150+180+210+240 = 900 lakh, giving an average annual sales figure of 900/5 = 180 lakh. The percentage growth from 2021 to 2025 is calculated as [(240−120)/120]×100 = 100%, meaning sales exactly doubled over the five-year period. When a bar graph question asks for "percentage growth between two given years," always divide the absolute increase by the earlier year's value, not the later year's value.
4A.2 A Fully Worked Pie Chart Set
A pie chart shows the distribution of 800 students across four streams: Science 35%, Commerce 25%, Arts 20%, and Others 20%. Reading off each segment: Science = 800×0.35 = 280 students; Commerce = 800×0.25 = 200 students; Arts = 800×0.20 = 160 students; Others = 800×0.20 = 160 students. A useful check: the four values should sum back to the total (280+200+160+160 = 800), confirming the reading is consistent before proceeding to any follow-up ratio or difference question.
4A.3 A Fully Worked Tabular DI Set
A table shows the number of loan applications processed by four bank branches over two quarters:
| Branch | Q1 | Q2 |
|---|---|---|
| Branch A | 240 | 300 |
| Branch B | 180 | 210 |
| Branch C | 320 | 280 |
| Branch D | 260 | 310 |
The total applications processed across all branches in Q1 = 240+180+320+260 = 1,000. The total in Q2 = 300+210+280+310 = 1,100. The overall percentage increase from Q1 to Q2 = [(1,100−1,000)/1,000]×100 = 10%. Branch-level, Branch C is the only branch that saw a decline (320 to 280, a fall of 40), which is a common trap: candidates who compute only the overall total's increase without checking individual rows can miss that one branch actually declined while the aggregate rose.
4A.4 A Fully Worked Caselet DI Set
A caselet states: "In a survey of 500 employees, 60% were male. Of the male employees, 40% preferred remote work, while of the female employees, 55% preferred remote work." Working through this: male employees = 500×0.60 = 300; female employees = 500×0.40 = 200. Male employees preferring remote work = 300×0.40 = 120. Female employees preferring remote work = 200×0.55 = 110. Total employees preferring remote work = 120+110 = 230, which is 230/500 = 46% of all employees surveyed. Caselet DI questions require extracting each numeric fact from the prose into a small table before calculating, exactly as with a formal table-based DI set.
4A.5 A Fully Worked Line Chart Set
A line chart shows a factory's monthly output (in units) as: January 400, February 450, March 420, April 480, May 500, June 460. The month-on-month change from April to May is an increase of 500−480 = 20 units, a growth of (20/480)×100 ≈ 4.17%. The single month with the highest output is May at 500 units, and the single month with the lowest output is January at 400 units, giving a difference of 100 units between the highest and lowest months.
4A.6 Practice Set — Advanced Data Interpretation (14 MCQs)
(Questions 1–5 refer to the bar graph in section 4A.1: annual sales of 120, 150, 180, 210, and 240 lakh for 2021–2025 respectively.)
- What was the average annual sales over the five years shown?
(a) ₹180 lakh (b) ₹175 lakh (c) ₹190 lakh (d) ₹170 lakh - What was the percentage growth in sales from 2021 to 2025?
(a) 100% (b) 90% (c) 110% (d) 80% - What was the total sales recorded across all five years?
(a) ₹900 lakh (b) ₹850 lakh (c) ₹950 lakh (d) ₹880 lakh - By how much did sales increase from 2023 to 2024?
(a) ₹30 lakh (b) ₹25 lakh (c) ₹35 lakh (d) ₹20 lakh - Sales in 2022 were what percentage of sales in 2025?
(a) 62.5% (b) 60% (c) 65% (d) 58%
(Questions 6–9 refer to the pie chart in section 4A.2: 800 students, Science 35%, Commerce 25%, Arts 20%, Others 20%.)
- How many students belong to the Science stream?
(a) 280 (b) 260 (c) 300 (d) 240 - How many more students are in Commerce than in Arts?
(a) 40 (b) 30 (c) 50 (d) 20 - What is the combined number of students in Arts and Others?
(a) 320 (b) 300 (c) 340 (d) 280 - Commerce students represent what fraction of the total?
(a) 1/4 (b) 1/5 (c) 1/3 (d) 2/5
(Questions 10–12 refer to the tabular DI set in section 4A.3.)
- What was the overall percentage increase in applications from Q1 to Q2 across all branches?
(a) 10% (b) 8% (c) 12% (d) 15% - Which branch recorded a decline in applications from Q1 to Q2?
(a) Branch C (b) Branch A (c) Branch B (d) Branch D - What was the total number of applications processed in Q1 across all branches?
(a) 1,000 (b) 950 (c) 1,050 (d) 900
(Questions 13–14 refer to the caselet in section 4A.4.)
- How many employees in total preferred remote work?
(a) 230 (b) 220 (c) 240 (d) 210 - What percentage of the total surveyed employees preferred remote work?
(a) 46% (b) 44% (c) 48% (d) 42%
Answer Key with Explanations
1.(a) Total sales = 120+150+180+210+240 = 900; average = 900/5 = ₹180 lakh.
2.(a) Growth = [(240−120)/120]×100 = 100%.
3.(a) Total sales = 120+150+180+210+240 = ₹900 lakh.
4.(a) Increase from 2023 to 2024 = 210−180 = ₹30 lakh.
5.(a) 2022 sales as a percentage of 2025 sales = (150/240)×100 = 62.5%.
6.(a) Science students = 800×0.35 = 280.
7.(a) Commerce (200) exceeds Arts (160) by 200−160 = 40 students.
8.(a) Arts (160) plus Others (160) = 320 students.
9.(a) Commerce is 25% of the total, which equals 1/4.
10.(a) Total Q1 = 1,000; total Q2 = 1,100; increase = 100/1,000×100 = 10%.
11.(a) Branch C's applications fell from 320 in Q1 to 280 in Q2, a decline of 40.
12.(a) Total Q1 applications = 240+180+320+260 = 1,000.
13.(a) Male remote-work preference = 300×0.40 = 120; female = 200×0.55 = 110; total = 120+110 = 230.
14.(a) 230 out of 500 employees = (230/500)×100 = 46%.