Order & Ranking – MBA CET questions with solutions

Approach: Ranking by chaining 'before/behind' clues.

Solution:
Raj finished before Mohit but behind Gaurav: Gaurav > Raj > Mohit.
Ashish finished before Sanchet but behind Mohit: Mohit > Ashish > Sanchet.
Join at Mohit: Gaurav > Raj > Mohit > Ashish > Sanchet.
Gaurav finished first.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: Raj is behind Gaurav.
C, D, E: Mohit, Ashish, Sanchet are all behind Raj.

Cetking shortcut: The winner is the one never said to be 'behind' anyone — Gaurav.

Answer: B

Approach: Rank arithmetic with a boys–girls split.

Solution:
Girls = 2 × Boys and total 60 → Boys = 20, Girls = 40.
Ashwini is 27th from top → 26 students ahead of her.
Boys ahead = 9 → Girls ahead = 26 − 9 = 17.
Ashwini is a girl, so girls up to and including her = 17 + 1 = 18.
Girls after her = 40 − 18 = 22.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: 23 forgets to exclude Ashwini herself.
B, D: arithmetic slips around 22.
E: 27 is her rank, not a count of girls.

Cetking shortcut: Girls after = Total girls − girls ahead − 1 (herself) = 40 − 17 − 1.

Answer: C

Approach: Row counting — positions from both ends.

Solution:
Total books = 64.
Western Music is 25th from left; Classical Music is 30th from right.
25 + 30 = 55 < 64, so the two books do not overlap and the gap lies between them.
Books between = 64 − 55 = 9.

Cetking shortcut: Between = Total − (left rank + right rank) when the sum is less than the total.

Answer: D

Approach: Row ranking — get one person's rank from both ends, then total = left + right − 1.

Solution:
Aman is 16th from left; Gagan is 11th to the right of Aman → Gagan is 16 + 11 = 27th from left.
Vivek is 18th from right; Gagan is 3rd from Vivek towards the right end → Gagan is 18 − 3 = 15th from right.
Total boys = 27 + 15 − 1 = 41.

Why the other options are wrong:
A, B: off by one — forgetting or double-subtracting Gagan.
C, E: adding ranks of different people.

Cetking shortcut: Convert everything to the common person (Gagan), then Total = L + R − 1.

Answer: D

Approach: Logical sequence — arrange by increasing size.

Solution:
Sizes: Mosquito (3) < Cat (2) < Tiger (4) < Elephant (1) < Whale (5).
Sequence: 3, 2, 4, 1, 5.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: puts Whale before Elephant and Tiger last.
B, D, E: start from a larger animal and break the size order.

Cetking shortcut: Smallest (mosquito) first and largest (whale) last — only C starts with 3 and ends with 5.

Answer: C

Approach: Logical sequence — order of human technological ages.

Solution:
Stone Age came first (3).
Then the Metallic Age — copper/bronze/iron (2).
Then the Alloy Age — mixed metals like steel (4).
Finally the modern Atomic Age (1).
Sequence: 3, 2, 4, 1.

Why the other options are wrong:
A, D: the same sequence (4,3,2,1); it starts with Alloy Age.
B: starts with Metallic Age, before Stone Age.
E: puts Atomic Age before Alloy Age.

Cetking shortcut: Stone Age must come first and Atomic Age last — only C does both.

Answer: C

Approach: Logical sequence of a hiring process.

Solution:
A candidate first sends an Application (2).
Applications go through Scrutiny (1).
Shortlisted candidates face the Interview (3).
Selected candidates get the Job Offer (4).
Finally comes Joining (5).
Order: 2, 1, 3, 4, 5.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: Job Offer before Scrutiny and Interview.
C: Scrutiny before any Application exists.
D: Job Offer before Interview.
E: Interview before Scrutiny.

Cetking shortcut: Fix the ends first: starts with Application (2), ends with Joining (5) → B, D and E remain; Job Offer must follow Interview (kills D) and Scrutiny must precede Interview (kills E) → B.

Answer: B

Approach: Logical sequence of life stages.

Solution:
Child (2) → School (4) → College (1) → Employment (5) → Salary (3).
Order: 2, 4, 1, 5, 3.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: starts with College before Child.
C: Salary before Employment.
D, E: start from Employment/Salary — reverse logic.

Cetking shortcut: Salary comes only after Employment ⇒ sequence must end 5, 3: only B.

Answer: B

Approach: Logical sequence of a hospital visit.

Solution:
Patient (1) visits the Doctor (4), who makes a Diagnosis (2), then gives Treatment (5), and finally the Bill (3).
Order: 1, 4, 2, 5, 3.

Why the other options are wrong:
A: Bill before Treatment.
B: repeats 3 and puts Bill before Diagnosis.
D: Doctor before Patient and Bill before Treatment.
E: starts with Treatment.

Cetking shortcut: Bill comes last ⇒ the sequence must end in 3: B and C remain; B repeats 3 and puts Bill before Diagnosis ⇒ only C.

Answer: C

Approach: Convert Sumit's rank from the end into a rank from the start, then move 7 places ahead.

Solution:
Sumit from start = 39 − 17 + 1 = 23rd.
Ravi is 7 ranks ahead → 23 − 7 = 16th.

Why the other options are wrong:
A 14th / B 15th: arithmetic slips (forgetting the +1 or subtracting 8–9).
D 17th: uses Sumit's rank from the end directly.
E 30th: adds 7 instead of subtracting.

Cetking shortcut: Ravi from the end = 17 + 7 = 24th, so from start = 39 − 24 + 1 = 16.

Answer: C

Approach: Logical sequence — order from the smallest unit of language to the largest.

Solution:
Letters (4) form a Word (1); words form a Phrase (5); phrases form a Sentence (3); sentences form a Paragraph (2).
Sequence = 4, 1, 5, 3, 2

Why the other options are wrong:
A) puts Paragraph before Sentence.
B) puts Paragraph second.
C) starts with Word before Letters.
E) puts Sentence before Phrase.

Answer: D

Approach: Logical sequence — order from the smallest social unit to the largest.

Solution:
Member (3) → Family (1) → Locality (4) → Community (2) → Country (5).
A member belongs to a family, families live in a locality (neighbourhood), localities together form a community, and communities make up the country.
Sequence = 3, 1, 4, 2, 5

Why the other options are wrong:
B) puts Country before Locality.
C) puts Country before Community.
D) puts Locality before Family.
E) places Community before Locality, but a locality (neighbourhood) is the smaller unit.

Answer: A

Approach: Logical sequence — follow the cause-to-effect chain.

Solution:
Rising Population (2) → Unemployment (4) → Poverty (1) → Disease (5) → Death (3).
Sequence = 2, 4, 1, 5, 3

Why the other options are wrong:
A) starts with Death.
B) starts with Poverty before its cause.
C) puts Death second.
E) puts Death before Disease.

Answer: D

Approach: Logical sequence — follow the order of the process.

Solution:
Measure (4) the cloth → Mark (3) it → Cut (1) → Tailor (5) / stitch it → Put on (2) the garment.
Sequence = 4, 3, 1, 5, 2

Why the other options are wrong:
B) tailors before cutting.
C) marks before measuring.
D) cuts first.
E) puts on the garment first.

Answer: A

Approach: Logical sequence — follow the order of the process.

Solution:
Advertisement (5) → Application (6) → Interview (2) → Selection (3) → Appointment (4) → Probation (1).
Sequence = 5, 6, 2, 3, 4, 1

Why the other options are wrong:
A) puts Probation before Interview.
C) selects before the interview.
D) applies before the advertisement.
E) appoints before the interview.

Answer: B

Approach: Total = position from left + position from right − 1.

Solution:
Total = 27 + 34 − 1 = 60.
(Sapkal is counted in both positions, so subtract 1.)

Answer: C

Approach: Convert both positions to the same end, then count the gap.

Solution:
Mongolian History from left = 64 − 30 + 1 = 35th.
Ancient History is 25th from left.
Books between = 35 − 25 − 1 = 9.

Why the other options are wrong:
E (10) forgets to subtract 1; C (16) and A (25) mix up the two ends.

Answer: D

Approach: Use the middle position to locate the youngest lioness, then apply the total formula.

Solution:
Eldest = 9th from left; cub (exactly in the middle) = 15th from left.
Gap from eldest to cub = 15 − 9 = 6 places, so the youngest is 6 places beyond the cub: 15 + 6 = 21st from left.
Youngest is 8th from right.
Total = 21 + 8 − 1 = 28.

Answer: D

Approach: Find the total, then subtract the target size.

Solution:
Total = 7 + 6 − 1 = 12 persons.
To leave exactly 6: remove 12 − 6 = 6.

Why the other options are wrong:
A (5) comes from taking the total as 11 or 13 incorrectly.

Answer: E

Approach: Build the height chain from the clues.

Solution:
Rakesh < Shashi < Kunal.
Aashish is between Shashi and Kunal: Shashi < Aashish < Kunal.
Madhur is the tallest.
Increasing order: Rakesh, Shashi, Aashish, Kunal, Madhur.
Second = Shashi.

Why the other options are wrong:
D (Rakesh) is first; B (Aashish) is third; E (Kunal) fourth; C (Madhur) fifth.

Answer: A

Approach: Rank formula.

Solution:
Total = 8 + 15 − 1 = 22 (Amar is counted twice).

Answer: D

Approach: Merge the inequality chains.

Solution:
P better than Q, worse than R → R > P > Q.
S better than T, worse than Q → Q > S > T.
Combined: R > P > Q > S > T → 2nd = P.

Answer: A

Approach: Merge the height chains.

Solution:
D > A > B (A taller than B, shorter than D).
A > C > E (C taller than E, shorter than A).
A is taller than B, C, E and only D is taller than A → tallest = D.

Answer: A

Approach: Merge the inequality chains.

Solution:
P > Q and P < R → R > P > Q.
S > T and S < Q → Q > S > T.
Combined: R > P > Q > S > T → 3rd = Q.

Answer: D

Approach: Order stages of skill development from lowest to highest.

Solution: Skill grows in stages: Novice (1) → Advanced Beginner (2) → Intermediate (3) → Expert (4) → Master (5).
Sequence: 1-2-3-4-5.

Why the other options are wrong: A and D put Advanced Beginner before Novice; C and E swap middle stages (Intermediate/Expert).

Cetking shortcut: This is the Dreyfus skill model – the order is already as listed.

Answer: B

Approach: Order the stages of building scientific knowledge.

Solution: A Thought (1) is refined into a Concept (2); a Concept leads to a testable Hypothesis (4); a tested hypothesis becomes a Theory (3); a theory proven universally becomes a Law (5).
Sequence: 1-2-4-3-5.

Why the other options are wrong: B starts with Concept before Thought; C puts Theory before Hypothesis; D and E put Hypothesis before Concept or Concept after Hypothesis.

Cetking shortcut: Remember: Hypothesis → Theory → Law is the fixed scientific tail; only check the first two.

Answer: A

Approach: Order the events of a patient's journey.

Solution: First comes Illness (2), then the patient goes to the Doctor (3), gets a Consultation (1), receives Treatment (4) and finally Recovery (5).
Sequence: 2 3 1 4 5.

Why the other options are wrong: A and C start with Treatment/Recovery; B puts Treatment before Consultation; E starts with Doctor before Illness.

Cetking shortcut: Start = cause (Illness), End = result (Recovery): only B and D survive; Consultation must precede Treatment → D.

Answer: D

Approach: Order the cause-and-effect chain of inflation.

Solution: Demand (2) leads to Consumption (5); rising consumption pushes Price Rise (4); sustained price rise is Inflation (1); inflation causes Reduced Purchasing Power (3).
Sequence: 2-5-4-1-3.

Why the other options are wrong: A ends with Inflation and puts Reduced Purchasing Power before Price Rise; B moves Consumption to the end, though consumption is what drives prices; D and E start with Consumption before Demand.

Cetking shortcut: End of chain = final effect (Reduced Purchasing Power) → only C and D end in 3; demand must come before consumption → C.

Answer: C

Approach: Order the steps of logical/scientific reasoning.

Solution: We begin with Observation (3), form an Assumption (1), test it through Validation (2), draw an Inference (4) and finally reach a Conclusion (5).
Sequence: 3-1-2-4-5.

Why the other options are wrong: A, C and E start with Assumption without observing first; D puts Validation at the very end after the Conclusion.

Cetking shortcut: Observation must be first and Conclusion last → only B fits.

Answer: B

Approach: Arrange the number names in increasing value.

Solution:
Hundred (10²) < Thousand (10³) < Million (10⁶) < Billion (10⁹) < Trillion (10¹²)
= 4, 2, 5, 3, 1.

Why the other options are wrong: A, B, E start from Trillion and break the order; C places Billion before Million.

Answer: D

Approach: Total in a list = rank from top + rank from bottom – 1.

Solution:
Selected students = 18 + 36 – 1 = 53.
Add those not in the list: 12 (did not opt) + 7 (disqualified) = 19.
Class strength = 53 + 19 = 72.

Why the other options are wrong: 61 / 57 / 65 omit one group or miscount Vinay; 82 adds wrongly.

Answer: B

Approach: Convert both positions to the same end, then take the midpoint.

Solution:
Riya from left = 68 – 17 + 1 = 52.
Smita = 22nd from left.
Middle position = (22 + 52) ÷ 2 = 37.

Why the other options are wrong: 34 is the middle of the whole row; others come from not converting Riya's position.

Answer: C

Approach: Order the parts as a reader meets them in a book.

Solution:
Cover comes first; the epilogue is the last part of the text.
Prologue comes before the chapters.
Only option B keeps Cover first, Prologue → Chapter, and Epilogue last: 5, 3, 4, 2, 1 (Cover, Index, Prologue, Chapter, Epilogue) — here 'Index' is read as the contents list at the front.

Why the other options are wrong:
A, C: do not start with the cover.
D: places Epilogue before Chapter.
E: places Chapter before Prologue.

Cetking shortcut: Fix the sure ends (Cover first, Epilogue last) and the sure pair (Prologue before Chapter) — only one option survives.

Answer: B

Approach: Turn the statements into an age chain.

Solution:
Raju = 2 × Sharad → Raju > Sharad.
Raju = ½ × Somnath → Somnath = 2 × Raju → Somnath > Raju.
Sharad > Moreshwar.
Chain: Somnath > Raju > Sharad > Moreshwar → Somnath is the eldest.

Answer: C

Approach: Dictionary order, then count from the right.

Solution:
Sorted: CUB, DEN, EAR, OWL, RAT.
Second from right = OWL.
Third letter of OWL = L.

Answer: D

Approach: Ranking by comparison — split people into 'taller than T' and 'shorter than T'.

Solution:
T is taller than P and B ⇒ P, B are below T.
T is shorter than A and Q ⇒ A, Q are above T.
Order: {A, Q} > T > {P, B}. 'P is not the shortest' ⇒ B is shortest, but nothing compares A with Q.
So the tallest is either A or Q.

Why the other options are wrong:
A alone / Q alone: A vs Q is never compared. Either P or B / P: both are shorter than T.

Answer: E

Approach: Ranking puzzle — fix positions from 'more than only' / 'less than only' clues, then use the given marks.

Solution:
C scored more than only A and E ⇒ C is 4th (two people below him).
D scored less than only B ⇒ B is 1st, D is 2nd.
E did not score the least ⇒ E is 5th, A is 6th. Remaining F is 3rd.
3rd highest = F = 81. E = 62.
Maximum (B) = F + 13 = 94.
D lies between B and F: 81 < D < 94 ⇒ only 89 fits.

Why the other options are wrong:
81: that is F's score (all scores are different). 67, 78, 75: below F's 81, but D is 2nd.

Cetking shortcut: 'More than only X and Y' = exactly two below; 'less than only B' = exactly one above — place these first.

Answer: C

Approach: Position conversion in a row: left position = Total − right position + 1.

Solution:
Suraj is 22nd from the right → from the left = 54 − 22 + 1 = 33rd.
Manoj is 35th from the left.
Persons between 33rd and 35th = 35 − 33 − 1 = 1 (the 34th person).

Cetking shortcut: Between = |p₁ − p₂| − 1 once both positions are from the same end.

Answer: E

Approach: People leaving on one side do not change the rank counted from the other side.

Solution:
Rahul is 10th from the left in 25 → from the right = 25 − 10 + 1 = 16th.
5 persons to his left leave – nobody to his right moves.
So he is still 16th from the right (row now has 20; from the left he is 5th: 20 − 5 + 1 = 16 ✓).

Cetking shortcut: Changes on the left never affect the count from the right.

Answer: C

Approach: Queue positions from the front; minimise by packing everyone close to the front.

Solution:
3 people ahead of Charan → Charan is 4th.
8 people between Bhavan and Charan → Bhavan is 4 + 9 = 13th (cannot be in front: 4 − 9 < 1).
5 people between Amey and Bhavan → Amey is 13 − 6 = 7th or 13 + 6 = 19th; take 7th for the minimum.
21 people behind Amey → total = 7 + 21 = 28.

Cetking shortcut: Total = Amey's position + 21, so just place Amey as far forward as the gaps allow.

Answer: E

Approach: Build an age order from the comparisons.

Solution:
Lata > Lalita > Meera (Lalita elder than Meera, younger than Lata).
Hema is younger than Meera: Meera > Hema.
Lila is younger than both Meera and Hema: Hema > Lila.
Order: Lata > Lalita > Meera > Hema > Lila → Lila is youngest.

Cetking shortcut: Lila is younger than Hema, who is already the lowest of the others – no need to rank everyone.

Answer: D

Approach: Chain the score comparisons.

Solution:
Priya > Raju; Raju > Yamini; Yamini = Diya; Diya > Manisha; Manisha > Laxmi.
Order: Priya > Raju > Yamini = Diya > Manisha > Laxmi.
Lowest = Laxmi.

Answer: A

Approach: Arrange metric prefixes by size.

Solution:
Centi = 1/100, Deci = 1/10, Deca = 10, Hecto = 100, Kilo = 1000.
Increasing order: Centi (2) → Deci (5) → Deca (3) → Hecto (1) → Kilo (4) = 2, 5, 3, 1, 4.

Why the other options are wrong:
A, B, E start with Hecto and are not monotonic.
D puts Deci before Centi and Kilo before Deca.

Cetking shortcut: Memorise "King Henry Died By Drinking Chocolate Milk": kilo, hecto, deca, base, deci, centi, milli.

Answer: C

Approach: Dictionary order: compare letter by letter after the common prefix "Elect".

Solution:
Elect is shortest → first.
After "Elect": Elector has "o", Electric/Electrode/Electron have "r" → Elector second.
Among Electr-: Electric (i) < Electrode (o-d) < Electron (o-n).
Order: Elect, Elector, Electric, Electrode, Electron.
Middle (3rd) word = Electric = (a).

Why the other options are wrong:
B (Elector) is 2nd, C (Electrode) 4th, D (Elect) 1st, E (Electron) 5th.

Cetking shortcut: Strip the common prefix and compare only the leftovers: "", "or", "ric", "rode", "ron".

Answer: A

Approach: Order anniversaries by number of years.

Solution:
Silver Jubilee = 25, Golden Jubilee = 50, Diamond Jubilee = 60, Centenary = 100, Millennium = 1000.
Increasing order: 3, 5, 2, 4, 1.

Why the other options are wrong:
A starts with Diamond (60).
B puts Diamond (60) before Golden (50) and Millennium last-but-one.
D puts Millennium second.
E starts with Diamond.

Cetking shortcut: Only C starts 3, 5 (Silver, Golden) — the rest is automatic.

Answer: C

Approach: Order frequency adverbs from most to least frequent.

Solution:
Always (5) → Generally (3) → Sometimes (2) → Seldom (4) → Never (1).
Sequence: 5, 3, 2, 4, 1.

Why the other options are wrong:
A, B, E put Sometimes before Generally.
C puts Never before Seldom.

Cetking shortcut: All options start with 5 and end in 1 or 4/3 — decide only "Generally vs Sometimes" and "Seldom vs Never".

Answer: D

Approach: Policy cycle: problem → consultation → design → approval → implementation → monitoring → impact assessment.

Solution:
B: identify the public problem first.
F: consult stakeholders to understand needs and options.
D: design and draft the policy using that input.
C: get approval from the authority.
G: implement the approved policy.
A: monitor and evaluate while it runs.
E: assess the final impact.
Sequence: B → F → D → C → G → A → E.

Why the other options are wrong:
B: drafts before consulting stakeholders.
C: approval before the policy is drafted.
D: consults after approval.
E: consults before the problem is even identified.

Cetking shortcut: Fix the anchors: B first, G after C, A & E last — only F/D order varies; consultation precedes drafting.

Answer: A

Approach: Apply the operations in the given order to each number, then rank the results.

Solution:
Add 1 to the last digit: 567→568, 284→285, 696→697, 865→866, 738→739.
Reverse the digits: 568→865, 285→582, 697→796, 866→668, 739→937.
Ascending order: 582 (284), 668 (865), 796 (696), 865 (567), 937 (738).
4th position = 865, which came from the original number 567.

Cetking shortcut: After reversing, only the original first digit becomes the last digit and the new first digit is (last digit + 1) — rank by that leading digit: 2→5, 8→6, 6→7, 5→8, 7→9; the 4th is 567.

Answer: D

Approach: Rearrange the digits, then read positions from each end.

Solution:
Digits of 79246358 in descending order: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2.
Second from the left = 8.
Third from the right (2, 3, 4) = 4.
Difference = 8 − 4 = 4.

Answer: E

Approach: Split the people ahead of Soumya into girls and boys.

Solution:
Girls : Boys = 1 : 6 → girls = 147 × 1/7 = 21, boys = 126.
Soumya is 15th → 14 people are in front of her.
7 of them are girls → 14 − 7 = 7 boys in front.
Boys behind her = 126 − 7 = 119.

Cetking shortcut: Boys behind = total boys − (people ahead − girls ahead) = 126 − 7 = 119.

Answer: D