If you dream of going to a medical school, you’ve probably heard of the GAMSAT exam. As mentioned in the title, it is one of the most important exams you will ever sit in your life if you want to go into the medical field – especially if you live in Australia or the UK.
If you want to apply to a medical school in Australia or the UK, chances are, the university will require you to submit a GAMSAT score during your application. The GAMSAT is a 4.1-hour long exam designed to test a candidate’s ability to keep up with medical schools’ rigorous demands. The GAMSAT aims to test candidates’ reasoning skills, and not rote memorisation. Meaning, the questions are designed to be solvable just with the information provided, and not with any prior knowledge. Although this might make the GAMSAT sound easier to crack, it actually makes it harder.
The GAMSAT is very much unlike any exams you have probably sat before in your life. The GAMSAT is not easy to prepare for. The key to acing the GAMSAT is through practice, practice, and practice. This is why it is so important to understand what is the GAMSAT and the different skills that are being tested in each GAMSAT section.
The GAMSAT is divided into 3 sections. We provide more information below about each section of the GAMSAT and their preparation strategies.
GAMSAT Written Communication Section
The GAMSAT Written Communication Section was previously known as Section 2. However, a few years ago, ACER – the official governing body of the GAMSAT – decided to split the exam up into 2 days – one for Written Communication and one for the other sections.
The Written Communication Exam is typically held 3 weeks prior to the other sections. This part of the GAMSAT, as the name suggests, involves writing 2 essays in 65 minutes. You will be given prompts, and you will be required to write the essays based on those prompts.
For this section of the GAMSAT, it is important to practice and have other people read your essays, as well as give feedback. It is also important to start practicing early – because good essay writing skills don’t develop overnight. They develop with consistent practice and good feedback from people who understand the GAMSAT and know what the examiners will be looking for in your essays. Having someone who has sat the GAMSAT before and successfully got into a medical school mark your essays is incredibly helpful. This is a service that many GAMSAT preparation companies provides.
GAMSAT Reasoning in Humanities and Social Sciences Section
This section used to be known as GAMSAT Section 1. It used to be the first section that students will tackle during the GAMSAT. Unlike GAMSAT Written Communication, GAMSAT Reasoning in Humanities and Social Sciences is MCQ-based. You will be provided with background information in the form of a stem, and then there will be 1-4 child questions that you will have to answer based on that stem.
You might be surprised by this fact, but Reasoning in Humanities and Social Sciences is actually the section that often trips people up. Not many people score highly in this section. Therefore, if you manage to score highly in this section, you will stand out among your peers.
Similar to the other sections of the GAMSAT, the best way to prepare for this section is to practice, practice, practice. Do as many GAMSAT multiple choice questions as you can get your hands on. Some GAMSAT preparation companies provide free practice questions, and their paid MCQ bank can provide as many as over six thousand practice questions.
GAMSAT Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences Section
This is the third and final section of the GAMSAT. This section aims to test your ability to reason through science concepts, using calculations. It might seem like this is the most difficult section of the GAMSAT, but since most GAMSAT sitters tend to be strong in the sciences, it’s actually not that uncommon to get a high score in this section. That said, if you don’t have a strong background in science, you might want to focus more on this section than the other sections, because this section is double weighted. Meaning, if you score highly in this section, it will be more impactful than if you score highly in the other sections.
As mentioned before, the GAMSAT does not aim to test rote memorisation. Rather, the GAMSAT’s aim is to test your reasoning skills. Therefore, simply memorising formulae and science concepts are not enough. You also need to do practice questions in order to get used to GAMSAT-style questions. You will also need to know some basic math. As for pre-requisite knowledge, you are expected to have a first year university level of knowledge in biology and chemistry, as well as Year 12 knowledge in physics.
As you can see, the GAMSAT is a challenging exam that has many different sections – all aiming to test different skills and knowledge. Again, do as many practice questions as you can get your hands on. That’s the best way to prepare for the GAMSAT.
