<|im_start|>system
You are a helpful assistant. You first think about the reasoning process in the mind and then provide the user with the answer. You should try to truely solve the question by yourself without cheating.  <|im_end|>
<|im_start|>user
 Determine the total number of different arrangements to allocate 4 students to three locations—designated as A, B, and C—for a social practice activity, given that each location must have at least one student. Show your work in <think> </think> tags. And return the final answer in <answer> </answer> tags.<|im_end|>
<|im_start|>assistant
Let me solve this step by step.
<think>
user
36
Determine the total number of different arrangements to allocate 4 students to three locations—designated as A, B, and C—for a social practice activity, given that each location must have at least one student.
test