Statement: “If you are an engineer, we have a challenging job for you.” Consider this recruitment statement and decide which of the given assumptions is implicit.

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: Only assumption 1 is implicit.

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This question is about identifying assumptions in a recruitment style statement. The organisation says, If you are an engineer, we have a challenging job for you. You must decide which underlying ideas are taken for granted. Such questions teach you to see the difference between what is explicitly stated and what must be silently assumed for the statement to be meaningful.


Given Data / Assumptions:

  • Statement: If you are an engineer, we have a challenging job for you.
  • Assumption 1: The organisation needs an engineer.
  • Assumption 2: You are an engineer.
  • We must decide which of these assumptions the statement relies on.


Concept / Approach:
The statement is conditional. It does not assert that you definitely are an engineer, but it offers a job on the condition that you are. When an advertisement says If you have qualification X, we have an opportunity for you, the implicit assumption is that they indeed require someone with qualification X. They do not assume that every reader already has that qualification. Therefore, we look for assumptions about the employer's needs rather than about the candidate's identity.


Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: The organisation says they have a challenging job for you if you are an engineer. This suggests that the job requires engineering skills.Step 2: For such a statement to be meaningful, the organisation must assume that it needs an engineer to fill that job. Otherwise there would be no reason to mention engineers specifically.Step 3: That idea is exactly what is expressed in Assumption 1: We need an engineer. Hence Assumption 1 is implicit.Step 4: Consider Assumption 2: You are an engineer. The statement does not presuppose that the person addressed already is an engineer; instead, it invites anyone who is an engineer to apply.Step 5: The conditional wording If you are an engineer clearly leaves open the possibility that the listener is not an engineer. Therefore the statement does not rely on the belief that the listener actually is an engineer.Step 6: Thus Assumption 2 is not implicit, while Assumption 1 is.


Verification / Alternative check:
Imagine the organisation does not need an engineer at all. In that case, the statement If you are an engineer, we have a challenging job for you would be pointless and misleading. So Assumption 1 must hold. Now imagine the person reading the statement is a school student who is not an engineer. The organisation can still make the same statement in an advertisement, and it remains logically fine. This shows that the statement does not depend on believing that the specific reader is an engineer.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:

  • Option b is wrong because Assumption 2 is not required for the statement to make sense.
  • Option c is wrong because the statement clearly depends on Assumption 1 and not on Assumption 2.
  • Option d is wrong because there is at least one necessary assumption, namely Assumption 1.
  • Option e is wrong because it incorrectly includes Assumption 2.


Common Pitfalls:

  • Misreading conditional statements and thinking that the speaker believes the condition is already satisfied.
  • Confusing the target audience of a statement with the assumptions about any one individual listener.
  • Assuming both given assumptions must be used, instead of checking each separately.


Final Answer:
The statement implicitly assumes that the organisation needs an engineer, so only assumption 1 is implicit.

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