Prompt
You are president of a student volunteer club that has raised $5,000 this year, and the members must choose where to donate it. Half of them want to give it to a local youth shelter where many members volunteer every week, which serves about 30 teenagers. The other half want to give it to an international charity that provides clean drinking water in low-income countries. Independent evaluators estimate that $5,000 given to this charity will protect several hundred children from serious illness. The vote is tied, and the club's rules give you the deciding vote. How would you vote?
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After you practice: what this question tests and how to approach it
What this question tests
- Ethical reasoning
- Critical thinking
- Teamwork and collaboration
How to approach this question
This MMI station tests how you weigh measurable impact for distant strangers against obligations to people your members know and serve every week. Present both sides fairly: several hundred children protected from illness, and 30 teenagers at a shelter where your members have built relationships. Ask aloud what you'd want to know, such as whether the shelter has other funding and how reliable the charity's estimates are. Consider whether a split, or a pledge to fundraise for the other cause next, honors both groups. Cast your deciding vote clearly and explain how you'd keep the half of the club that lost engaged. If the station raises the stakes for one side, decide whether the new facts change the comparison or only make it more emotional.
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