In a company 60% of the employees earn less than $50,000

[cesar.rodriguez.blanco]

In a company 60% of the employees earn less than $50,000 a year, 60% of the employees earn more than $40,000 a year, 11% of the employees earn $43,000 a year and 5% of the employees earn $49,000 a year. What is the median salary for the company?
a) 43.000
b) 45.500
c) 46.000
d) 49.000
e) 50.000

Source: gmatclub

[sunny.jain]

imo: a

VERY DIFFICULT TO EXPLAIN HERE, I am sorry for that.

but here is something u can try to understand:

60% less than 50 K ==> 40% more than 50 K.

60% more than 40K ==> should include above 40%( greater than 50K)

so on a number line.

1-60% will be less than 50K, and 41-100 will be more than 40K.

now fit the 11% of 43 K and 5% of 49K.

even if we consider: 41 element as 43K, 50 and 51% will be 43K. so 43 K will be the answer.

[RonPurewal]

In a company 60% of the employees earn less than $50,000 a year, 60% of the employees earn more than $40,000 a year, 11% of the employees earn $43,000 a year and 5% of the employees earn $49,000 a year. What is the median salary for the company?
a) 43.000
b) 45.500
c) 46.000
d) 49.000
e) 50.000

Source: gmatclub

let's consider this in terms of PERCENTILES. (you have to know what percentiles are - they appear in other gmatprep software problems - so let's use that useful concept.)

the median is just the 50th percentile, providing us with a useful frame of reference through which to see this problem.

first fact: percentiles 0-60th are < 50,000
second fact: percentiles 40-100th are > 40,000
so we know that the 40-60th percentiles are between 40,000 and 50,000 (and, just as importantly, we know that the OTHER percentiles are NOT within this range).

third fact: there are 11 percentiles at 43,000.
using the above fact, all of these percentiles must fall between the 40th and 60th. therefore,
* the smallest they could be = 40th-51st
* the largest they could be = 49th-60th
that's good enough, without even using the last fact. the median is 43,000.

--

also:

the answer choices GUARANTEE you that the median will work out the SAME WAY EVERY TIME.

so, if you can construct ANY list of salaries that satisfies this problem, then you're good to go. you needn't worry about other possibilities, since the constant numbers in the answer choices ensure that the answer will always be the same.

so:

let's say that there are 100 employees
40 of them earn 0
11 of them earn 43,000
5 of them earn 49,000
4 of them earn, i don't know, 49,999
the last 40 of them earn 1,000,000

this works.
the median is 43,000.
done.