GAMSAT 2016 (2017 entry)

I mean each gold standard for different content at different price. Could you please tell which I should get or send me a link if possible


Posted from TSR Mobile

Thanks for uploading neuronerd, I can't access dropbox because it's blocked at work (rightly so I guess, protecting patient data and all that). I will get on it as soon as I'm home!

I just want to pass now it is getting ridiculous - 5 times sitting this exam and not scoring over 50 as a scientist upsets me. What techniques are people using for this exam?

Ouch. Have you tried the UKCAT?
Possibly it could be fatigue setting in as S3 is at the end of the day. Have you practiced doing testing over several hours on paper? Write a couple of essays then do some science tests - of any level. Just get used to maintaining focus over time on a medium that many people are not used to using - ie pen and paper, rather than learning and testing on a screen.

Also remember to take care of your health on the run up to testing, hydration on the day is really important too. Lots of little things can help boost performance.

I just want to pass now it is getting ridiculous - 5 times sitting this exam and not scoring over 50 as a scientist upsets me. What techniques are people using for this exam?

I believe a masters would open up Warwick as a possibility with a 2:2, which uses the UKCAT.

I would suggest taking the UKCAT as a trial run before signing up to a masters which is a pretty significant financial undertaking in itself. The MSc would need to be completed with a Merit or Distinction, M level is quite a step up from undergrad too.

Hi everyone, this is my first post on the site. I'll be sitting the GAMSAT in 2016 with the aim for 2017 entry, and am also considering sitting the Dublin GAMSAT in March as a sort of "taster".... Or rather, an expensive taster!

Currently my revision is generic, im covering all basic chemistry and physics from the ground up, and am trying to read a book a week on various topics. I'm in the final year of my Bsc in Biomedical Science so my biological knowledge is absolutely fine.

Can anyone recommend any good books for section 1 topics and/or any philosophical based books? Need to order some more soon!


Posted from TSR Mobile

I'd recommend A.C Grayling's The Meaning of Things. He uses a wide selection of quotes and explains a lot of philosophical issues. I found it really useful for section 2.

That sounds like a winner, I'll have to get it ordered. Thanks! How did you personally find the first section? Regarding both difficultly in the concepts and difficulty in the timing?


Posted from TSR Mobile

Hate to get all negative up in here but i need to vent. So after i scored a pretty mediocre score in the last GAMSAT. I've been preparing for the GAMSAT in March aswell as working full time as a HCA in a local hospital. My mission was simple , get onto a medicine course , mainly because i love altruistic nature of being a doctor and my love for learning about the human body. Also i felt it could provide a higher purpose for my existence. This was until i started shadowing the doctors.. they spent alot of their time on computers doing administrative/management related tasks.. very little individual patient interaction mainly because they were overloaded with patients. I felt like they really could not be asked and just followed protocol...One mentioned he had 58 additional patients to fit in on top of the ones he had scheduled in for the day. He could not possibly provide them with adequate care simple because he had so many to see , so he had to prioritise according to necessity. I could tell he was not happy with the way things were but he was powerless.

The one shining grace at my hospital was the nurses , they were simple awesome with the patients and did whatever they could to assist. After speaking to some of the consultants , there was one common theme, they all hated their job and STRONGLY advised me against studying medicine. Most were either waiting for retirement or were off abroad. They said they had horrible work/life balance and if they had to be reborn would not choose medicine. I then worked in a mental health ward with the idea that psychiatrists have it better off (well paid/ work life balance). They also spent most of their time in a clinic off the ward , was all computerised case note and writing up drug notes , very little patient interaction. Could not see what exactly they did for patients apart from drug write ups and a few intervention plans. Have not got to speak to psychiatrists about work/life balance because its all very cliquey at this hospital i.e. doctors with doctors etc. Also had a conversation with a family friend who is a pediatrician who simply said its not worth it even if you have a selfless desire to help others ; maybe do what warren buffet did , become a billionare and donate to charity. Spoke to my GP yesterday who said becoming a doctor ,i quote is "****" and wish he studied something else.

MY VIEW: After realising my desire to help others will not be fulfilled via medicine and getting constant negative feedback from people who are in the position i wish i was in. I cant see medicine as a viable option for me anymore. I realise my sample size is quite small , i can imagine there are some doctors out there who enjoy their jobs but after weighing up the pros and cons in medicine , i dont think its for me. I guess what ive realised is sometimes what you imagine things to be and how are they actually are very very different. Hopefully this long rant helps someone out , i know it helped me. On a more positive note lol im off to a placement at a dental practice to see what that may bring.

The data shows that, on average, applicants improve by 4 points on their first resit but do not improve a significant amount on subsequent resits. It is likely that, if you're currently scoring below 50 after 5 attempts, you're not going to reach the cutoff score without doing something drastically different in your revision; whether that be taking some time off work to study full time, taking a chemistry masters or a chemistry A-Level etc.

It could be that your reasoning skills are simply not good enough to pass this exam, because, at the end of the day, it is an aptitude test. I hope this is not the case for you, but it's worth thinking about.

I believe a masters would open up Warwick as a possibility with a 2:2, which uses the UKCAT.

Sorry if I'm coming across as harsh, but I feel like somebody has to say this lest you continue to waste time and money on future GAMSATs with no improvement. I'm not saying it's not possible for you to pass this exam, but what you have been doing to revise for it clearly isn't working and needs to be changed.

Fair point, that's probably a sensible thing to do.