What are the differences?
When should I use "as part of"? When should I use "as a part of"?
Thanks in advance.

hm - that's a good question.

i don't know if there are any clear-cut rules about this difference; i've seen them used interchangeably most of the time. if i were to try to articulate rules, i'd probably come up with something like this:
- use part of (without "a") if you're trying to emphasize the abstract or ideological connections between the entities under discussion. for instance, you'd say 'unconscious processes are part of human attraction' (not 'parts of' or 'a part of'), because you're emphasizing that the unconscious processes fall under the conceptual umbrella of human attraction.
- use a part of if you're just saying that an item falls within some classification, but you aren't necessarily implying any sort of ideological or conceptual common thread. for instance, 'nowadays the bathroom is a part of every american house, but not too long ago most of the u.s. population had outhouses.' --> you're not saying that the bathroom 'feels like part of the house', but, rather, that it's a literal component of the house.

here are two similar-sounding sentences to illustrate the difference:
#1 = james considers his stepsons a part of his family.
#2 = james considers his stepsons part of his family.
#1 is more strictly literal, meaning, perhaps, that james would write down his stepsons' names if he were to make a list of family members, or that he includes them as tax deductions, or some other highly literal 'component' meaning. #2, on the other hand, indicates that james thinks of the stepsons with the same emotional connotations as he does the rest of his family.

--

in any case, the difference is slight, and i am 100% sure that no gmat question will turn on it, so you should be safe either way.

Thanks for your explanation!

Umm...I am working on a really old OG question, and I don't know how to figure out what "as part of" is modifying.
What's the rule? The main verb in the preceding clause? The closest noun? The subject of the preceding clause?
Thanks in advance.

It should be the closest preceding MAIN noun - which is often the closest preceding noun but not always. You can sometimes have short prepositional phrases inserted. It is okay for you to post just an excerpt of that part of the sentence - but don't post the whole sentence.

Thanks Stacey.

Let me try to avoid the OG for now.

GMATPrep indeed has a similar question:

The computer company has announced that it will purchase the color-printing division of a rival company for $950 million, which is part of a deal that will make it the largest manufacturer in the office color-printing market.
A) million, which is part of a deal that will make
B) million, a part of a deal that makes
C) million, part of a deal making
D) million as a part of a deal to make
E) million as part of a deal that will make

What does "as part of a deal" modify? The whole preceding clause - "it will purchase the color-printing division of a rival company for $950 million"?

Thanks in advance.

hi -

please post this question as a separate thread in the gmat prep verbal folder.

that folder has a lot of traffic recently, so you may have to wait a few days for your answer. be patient please; we'll get to it.