PCAT PCAT Certifications PCAT Questions & Answers

• Question 11:

  Paul's average bowling score for a series was 164 and Dave's was 158. If each of them bowled 4 games, how much greater was Paul's total score for the series than Dave's?

  A. 24

  B. 6

  C. 18

  D. 12

  Correct Answer: A

  In this question, we are told that Paul's average bowling score for a series of 4 games was 164 and Dave's was 158. We are asked to determine the total amount that Paul's score was greater than Dave's. Therefore, Paul's score on average exceeded Dave's score by 6 points per game, which means that for all 4 games Paul's total score exceeded Dave's total score by 4 ?6 points or 24 points.

• Question 12:

  Farmer Smith enclosed his rectangular pasture with fence that cost him $1.50 per linear meter. If his pasture is twice as long as it is wide with a total area of 180,000 square meters, then what was the cost, in dollars, of the fence?

  A. 1,200

  B. 1,500

  C. 1,800

  D. 2,700

  Correct Answer: D

  In this question, we are told that a farmer enclosed a rectangular pasture with a fence that has a length that is twice as long as the width. The total area of the pasture is 180,000 square meters. We are asked to determine the cost of the entire fence given that is costs $1.50 per linear meter. The pasture is a rectangle and the area of a rectangle equals its length (L) times the width (W); hence, L ?W = 180,000. Since the length of the fence is twice as long as the width, substitute 2W for L in the area formula to get 2W ?W = 180,000. Dividing both sides of the equation by 2, we get that W2 = 90,000. Solving for W:

  

  The width of the fence is 300 meters; therefore, the length must be 2 ?300 = 600 meters. Since the perimeter of the pasture is 2 ?(300 + 600) or 1,800 meters and the cost of the fence is $1.50 per meter, the total cost of the fence is $1.5 times 1,800 or $2,700.

• Question 13:

  Which of the following is the greatest?

  A. 162

  B. 44

  C. 83

  D. 26

  Correct Answer: C

  In this question, we are asked to determine the answer choice with the greatest value. It is important to notice that all the answer choices are powers of 2: 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32. Therefore, all of the answer choices need to be expressed powers of 2. To start, let's leave choice [26] alone because it already has 2 as its base term. Choice [44] is the same as (22)4 or 28. It is important to note that when you take an exponent to a power, the exponent and the power term are multiplied. Choice [83] is (23)3 = 29. Choice [162] equals (24)2 or 28. Now you can see that choice [83] is correct because it has the greatest exponent.

• Question 14:

  If a multivitamin supplement costs $n for 100 pills, how many pills can be bought for $10?

  A. 10n

  B. 1000n

  C. 10/n

  D. 1000/n

  Correct Answer: D

  In this question, we can buy 100 pills for $n. We are asked to determine how many pills we can buy for $10. First, let's determine how many pills can be bought for $1: we can purchase 100/n. Therefore, $10 would buy 10 times 100/n or 1000/ n. Therefore, we can purchase 1000/n for $10.

• Question 15:

  What does 4x – 1/2y equal if x = 9 and y = 6?

  A. 36

  B. 33

  C. 30

  D. 26

  Correct Answer: B

• Question 16:

  A pizza dough recipe calls for 2 cups of flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. How much salt would you need if you wanted to triple the recipe?

  A. 1 tablespoon

  B. 3 teaspoons

  C. 6 teaspoons

  D. 4 1/2 teaspoons

  Correct Answer: D

• Question 17:

  How much do you save on a purchase of $47.00 if you shop in a store on a day in which the promotion is that the store will pay the sales tax (and sales tax is 8%)?

  A. $2.76

  B. $0.37

  C. $3.76

  D. $4.76

  Correct Answer: C

  47 ?8 / 100 = 376 / 100 = 3.76.

• Question 18:

  Lex's mom buys 3 of each kind of cookie for a picnic. If the store gives a 10% discount for purchase of a dozen cookies, how much did she spend?

  A. $22.60

  B. $21.60

  C. $23.00

  D. $24.00

  Correct Answer: B

  $6 + $4.50 + $7.50 + $6 = $24. 10% of $24 = $2.40. $24 - $2.40 = $21.60.

• Question 19:

  Lex's favorite cookie store sells the following cookies: Sugar: $2.00 Macaroons: $1.50 Chocolate chip: $2.50 Peanut butter: $2.00

  If Lex buys 3 cookies, what is the least amount he could have spent?

  A. $5.50

  B. $5.00

  C. $4.50

  D. $4.00

  Correct Answer: C

  The cheapest cookie is $1.50, times 3 is $4.50.

• Question 20:

  A small t-shirt store sells two different kinds of shirts: short sleeve cost $15.00 and long sleeve cost $18.00. If the store sold 21 shirts last night and made $351, how many of each kind of shirt did the store sell?

  A. 9 short sleeve and 12 long sleeve

  B. 6 short sleeve and 9 long sleeve

  C. 8 short sleeve and 11 long sleeve

  D. 7 short sleeve and 10 long sleeve

  Correct Answer: A