Those are some delicious looking jelly beans! What do you think is the ratio of red jelly beans to blue jelly beans?
What about pink jelly beans to whole bowls?
Knowing how to solve for ratios is critical when taking the HESI A2 Math section. And we'll show you how to do it:
Solving for Ratios
A ratio is a relationship between two numbers indicating how many times the first number contains the second.
For example, if the ratio of men to women is 1 to 5 then we know that for each man, there are 5 women.
For example, if the ratio of oranges to bananas is 2 to 3 then we know that for each pair of oranges, there are 3 bananas.
For example, if the ratio of pens to pencils is 3 to 7 then we know that for each triple of pens, there are 7 pencils.
A ratio can be written in three different ways:
n to m
or
n:m
or
n/m (this ratio as a fraction)
Suppose there are 75 students. If 25 of them are boys, then what is the ratio of boys to girls?
Solution: If there are 25 boys, then there must be 50 girls. So, the ratio of boys to girls is:
25 to 50 or (1/2)
or 1 to 2
or 1: 2
In a certain class, the ratio of passing grades to failing grades is 7 to 5. How many of the 24 students failed the course?
Solution. The ratio tells us that for each group of 7 students who passed the course, there is a group of 5 students who failed the course. In other words, for each group of 7 + 5 = 12 students, 5 of them failed the course. Since there are 24 students in the class, there are two such groups of 12 students. So, 5 + 5 = 10 students must have failed the course.
To get a free HESI math practice test with fully explained answers and solutions, enter your email below.