LSAT 144 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q24

LR Question 24 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Professor: Many introductory undergraduate science…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption

CONCLUSION: Introductory science courses aren’t successfully filtering for students who are most committed to being science majors.

REASONING: The courses are designed so that only people very committed to being science majors should be able to pass. But some people getting passing grades have a very low commitment to science.

ANALYSIS: The LSAT tests your ability to notice fine distinctions. Being committed to science is not necessarily the same thing as being committed to being a science major. The author has to assume they’re the same thing.

For an example, imagine someone who wants to be a doctor for the money, but doesn’t care about science per se. They could be highly committed to being a biology major, but not care about biology itself.

___________

1. This doesn’t matter. The argument is that only those most committed will get passing grades. But it doesn’t matter if every committed student gets a passing grade.
2. Doesn’t matter. The argument is only about whether the courses are serving their intended purpose. It doesn’t matter whether it’s actually smart for universities to design their courses this way.
3. This is similar to A. The argument said that only the most committed students can pass. But that’s not the same thing as saying that all of the most committed students can pass. Some can fail and the system could still work.
4. CORRECT. If this isn’t true, then it’s possible the unenthusiastic students who passed are nonetheless committed to being science majors. So the system works.
   Negation: Some of the students who weren’t enthusiastic about science were nonetheless committed to being science majors.
5. The argument is only about whether introductory courses are serving their purpose. It doesn’t matter if that purpose is a good idea or not.