At a high school, 60% of the 400 juniors and 45% of the 600... | SAT Percentages Question, Answer Explained

Math · Problem-Solving and Data AnalysisMedium

At a high school, $60\%$ of the $400$ juniors and $45\%$ of the $600$ seniors attended a football game. What percent of the juniors and seniors combined attended the game?

$45\%$

$51\%$

$52.5\%$

$60\%$

Show answer and explanation

Answer: B

The number of juniors who attended is $0.60 \times 400 = 240$ , and the number of seniors who attended is $0.45 \times 600 = 270$ . Together, $240 + 270 = 510$ of the $1{,}000$ students attended, and $\frac{510}{1{,}000} = 51\%$ .

Choice C averages $60\%$ and $45\%$ , but the two classes are different sizes, so the larger senior class counts more.

Why the other choices are wrong

A. 45% is the seniors' rate only.
C. This averages 60% and 45%, but there are more seniors than juniors, so the seniors' rate counts more.
D. 60% is the juniors' rate only.

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