Calculate the Whole: If 3 is 15 Percent, What is the Total?

To solve this problem, we'll follow these steps:

• Step 1: Identify the given information.
• Step 2: Apply the appropriate formula for finding the whole.
• Step 3: Perform the necessary calculations.

Now, let's work through each step:
Step 1: We are given that 15 percent of some whole amount is equal to 3.
Step 2: We use the formula for calculating the whole:

$\text{whole} = \frac{\text{part}}{\left(\frac{\text{percentage}}{100}\right)}$

Substituting the given values into the formula:
The part is 3, and the percentage is 15%. Thus, we calculate:

$\text{whole} = \frac{3}{\left(\frac{15}{100}\right)}$

Step 3: Simplify the expression:
First, convert 15% to a decimal by dividing by 100, which gives 0.15.
Now calculate:

$\text{whole} = \frac{3}{0.15}$

Perform the division:

$\text{whole} = 20$

Therefore, the solution to the problem is $20$.