You're reading this, so you're likely looking for tips to prepare for the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test - the GAMSAT. Thus, it's safe to assume that you're intent on a career in medicine. You already have years of studying and exam preparation under your belt. You know the GAMSAT is nothing like other academic exams you've sat. Do all the standard study tips still apply, then?
Some of your past test prep practice will serve you well this time, too. Others will fall short of what you need for a successful outcome. Still others will not help you at all. Which strategies should you deploy to ensure the best result? Before you dust off your test prep playbook, check out these ideas.
GAMSAT: What You Need to Know
The GAMSAT is not an academic exercise, nor does it test your knowledge of medicine. Naturally, the test contains academic elements. You will have essays to write. You'll need more than a passing familiarity with Year 12 physics, as well as first-year undergraduate chemistry and biology. Section I consists of multiple-choice questions; Section III has a few, too.
That's where the similarities end. Unlike previous exams' content, the GAMSAT doesn't require you to recall and record facts. Thus, you have little need for rote learning and memorisation. Although science and maths make up a part of your exam, they are not organised into discrete sections. You might first have a maths question followed by a chemistry question. And then comes a graph you must interpret...
Thus, your psychological preparation cannot be the same as for past exams. You won't be able to stay up late, studying for the subject you'll test on the next day. You won't be able to 'program' yourself that tomorrow you'll sit your science exam or maths exam or English composition exam as you drift off to sleep.
GAMSAT revision resources are far scarcer than for any other exam you've sat. There are GAMSAT preparation courses available but they are not required. The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) does not publish past papers. Nor do they provide a list of recommended reading. They make a narrow selection of test prep materials available. They offer a sampling of the types of questions you will see on the exam. Their website boasts an online essay writing tool that you can access a limited number of times to test your writing skills.
The GAMSAT is designed to test you, not your level of knowledge on anything medicine-related. It means to discover how you think and communicate on a broad range of ponderous topics. It proposes to challenge your endurance. How are you supposed to prepare for that?
Setting Revision Schedules
Do you remember the months leading up to your school leaving exams? Did you crack the books every night, for a couple of hours? You might have spent Monday studying one subject, reviewed content for another on Tuesday, gone over answers for a different one on Wednesday and so on. If so, successful GAMSAT candidates recommend you adopt that strategy again. It only needs to change a little bit for it to still work well for you.
As soon as you sign up for the exam, you should dedicate a couple of hours a day to test prep, just as you did in the past. However, schedule only one day per week to read official GAMSAT materials. And maybe another to revise science and maths, if needed.
Start with reading - a lot. As mentioned above, ACER does not provide a list of books to read. However, they recommend reading extensively from a variety of materials. You should read special interest periodicals, classic and contemporary novels, poetry and news magazines. You shouldn't be too judicious in your content; GAMSAT topics run from the philosophical to the artistic.
You may consider scheduling a debate at least once a month. Debating exposes you to opposing viewpoints and ideas that you may not have thought of on your own. It also helps you refine your arguments and communication style. When debating, you have to convey your ideas clearly and concisely in a limited time. Those are two traits the GAMSAT examiners look for in their candidates. Intellectual curiosity and critical thinking are two other such qualities.
Consider designing your revision schedule around building the personal attributes you need to cultivate to score well on the exam. That is, after all, what the GAMSAT tests you on. And don't forget to schedule some time off from studying each week. It would be unethical to overwork yourself. Yes, your sense of ethics is another personal quality the exam tests you on.
Using Revision Tools
As ACER provides you with only a little content for revision, what are you supposed to read to prepare for your exam? You have to know a bit about the exam to get the answers you need. More importantly, you have to know what's expected of you so you can deliver.
Exam questions are written with varying degrees of difficulty. Deceptively simple questions might, in fact, demand complex thought processes to arrive at the correct answers. On the other hand, sometimes, a simple question really is a simple question. This practice challenges you to determine the question's intent.
GAMSAT students all aver that this is one of the exam's most devious tactics. To make matters more challenging, ACER revision resources only present a narrow sampling of questions, all equally complex. GAMSAT question banks are the best resource to counter this challenge. They ask the same questions multiple times with increasing degrees of complexity. You can learn to detect the required answers by understanding the questions' formats.
Language usage is one of the main differences between the GAMSAT and the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT). The UCAT features only multiple-choice questions written in 'pedestrian' English. In other words, the type of easy-to-understand language that every high schooler would know. That's not the case with the GAMSAT.
Candidates are expected to read and write using advanced vocabulary. All of the reading you'll do will enhance your store of words but you need more than reading to build up your lexicon. You might search for GAMSAT vocabulary-building tools online. Quizlet, a free online study resource, lists several GAMSAT vocabulary flashcard decks. Incidentally, you can find GAMSAT science flashcard decks at Quizlet, too.
You might know that your exam contains several instances of defining or interpreting famous quotes (and texts). Also, Section II tasks involve finding common themes among five presented quotes. You must first determine what the quotes address and their underlying meaning. And then, you have to figure out what they all have in common. Of those shared themes, you'll choose one and write about it.
Getting good at this exercise should be your highest priority. First, search online for a GAMSAT quote generator. Create your free account and avail yourself of this revision tool often. You don't have to write an essay every time but you should make it a habit to analyse quote sets. To work most effectively, first, write each quote down. As you think about them, also write down their themes.
What About GAMSAT Tutoring?
By now, it should be clear that GAMSAT candidates need guidance while studying. You might put together a study group; that would make scheduling those aforementioned debates convenient. Perhaps your university or student union offers GAMSAT courses. If not, you might suggest they do.
In the meantime, feel free to make the go-to move students everywhere resort to. You might have done so yourself when you last prepared for career-determining exams. Did you hire a test prep tutor, back then?
Getting organised is one of the top advantages of revising your GAMSAT with a private tutor. GAMSAT tutors have been through the exam themselves and came out well from it. They know all the best revision strategies and know where to find the best content and resources.
The best tutors start their revision program by doing a thorough intake. They need to know where your strengths lie and what your uncertainties are. They have to find out how adept you are at teasing meaning out of complex texts. And, of course, they need to know where you stand on maths, science and graph interpretation.
Knowing your challenge in full is the best way to prepare for it. The trouble is, first-time GAMSAT candidates only have a vague idea of the exam. For instance, we know that high school physics will feature. But what aspects of that curriculum? And is it worth the time to review an entire school year's syllabus?
Better would be to have a guide steer you to the knowledge you need. Online or in-person (depending on location), Superprof GAMSAT tutors can help you plan a revision schedule that includes everything you need to prepare for your exam. They'll tell you all the tips and tricks they used to pass their test and point you to the best resources.
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