Expert: Josh - 6/14/2009

Question
I need to calculate this.

There are two sections A and B. A is 150 points, B is 200 points. Both A and B count for 50% of the total exam.

This would mean that each A point is worth 4/3=1.33 and each B point is worth 1. This is the given formula.

Since each A point is worth more than a B point, I want to calculate what % of the total points each A point is worth.

Because an A point is not equal to a B point.

They just keep saying A points are 4/3 the points of B, but it's easier for me to know how much to devote based on %. As in what the true % of each A and B point is relative to the entire exam.

Thanks very much.

Answer
Hi Nina,

To calculate the worth of each A point as a percentage of the total, we need to look at only two figures.

Since 150 points from A is equivalent to 50%. We can write this as 150*X=50, where X represents the worth of each point from section A. Dividing both sides by 150, we see that X equals (1/3) of a percentage point.

It follows that each point awarded in section B is worth (3/4)x(1/3) = (1/4) of a percentage point.

I hope this answers your question.

Josh