Student Feedback Report From March 2019 GAMSAT

Provided by www.gamsatreview.com & Dr Peter Griffiths

NOTE: This document is copyright (c) 2019 feel free to share it with friends or post it anywhere
on the internet (student forums, pdf sites etc) the only thing you can't do is sell it or use it for any
kind of monetary gain. This is a free report for gamsat students.

Hi everyone, as always I sent out an email asking for student feedback on the
latest sitting of Gamsat (March 2019) and these are the replies I received from
test centres all over the World.

The questions I asked were -

1. Where did you sit the test and what time did it start in your centre?

2. Was there strict checking of drinks, pens, pencils etc?

3. Did you think the test was easier/harder than the ACER practice tests?

4. What were the general topics of the essay questions?

5. Any other feedback you'd like to give.

Summary
Before we continue with the actual student comments here's a summary of the
answers and my analysis:

1. Nearly everyone agreed S.1 was similar in style and difficulty to the practice
tests (and this is in line with previous years feedback).

2. Many people (but not all) said that S.3 was harder than the practice tests, but
this happens in the feedback every year so should be taken with a grain of salt.

3. Again many people reported that the style of the questions was different from
expected but again this is frequently said in the feedback I receive. No
conclusions can really be drawn about any kind of trend in the type of questions
asked except that ACER likes to mix things up.

4. Not everyone gets the same essay prompts for S.2 and based on other
feedback I suspect that not everyone gets the same questions in S.1 or S.3.
However this shouldn't affect your preparation in any way, particularly if you're
using my essay method from Gamsat Review as it can be easily applied to any
set of prompts.

So here's all the detailed feedback >>

Hi Peter,

I’d be more than happy to offer some feedback.

Firstly, thank you for all of your emails and materials you offered over the build up - they were
invaluable and just kept reminding me of the importance of preparation. It was a tough exam
this time around (section 3 very heavy reasoning rather than science knowledge) and was my
first time sitting, so we will have to see!

1. London - Royal Horticultural Halls - sat on my desk at 8.20, didn’t start until 9.10am. Great
centre, given there were 500 people it felt very well run.
2. Not particularly with drinks, but I was told I could only write in pencil, even marking the exam
paper.
3. Section 1 felt like there were a few ‘nicer’ passages, but the picture questions had 4 very
similar answers. The essay’s were quite broad and not particularly classified as ‘world issues’.
Section 3 was quite different - less science content, much more maths and quick reasoning.
LOTS of writing!!
4. A - respect towards people of power/discipline/questioning people in power. B - recreation
and rest/we used to not have enough, now too much. What people do for leisure says a lot
about them etc.
5. It was a well organised day, given the number of people and the stress. Exhausting and
genuinely not sure how it went!

Best wishes,

Hi Peter,

I answered your questions in red in your email.

Hope my feedback is somewhat helpful!

1. Where did you sit the test and what time did it start in your centre?
I sat the test in London, address:
The Royal Horticultural Halls Lindley Hall
Elverton Street
London
SW1P 2PE

We had to register for 8.15am however the test did not start until an hour later.
2. Was there strict checking of drinks, pens pencils etc?
Relatively strict but I don’t think they thoroughly checked everyone the same - I
had to have the encasing of my rubber removed and had to place my pencil case on
the ground as it was not transparent, however I saw another girl with a pack mints
in her transparent pencil case and no one noticed.
3. Did you think the test was easier/harder than the ACER practice tests?
S1 was the same as the practice test - not many cartoons and poetry questions
however. Only a few questions with graphs also - not many long winded logic
questions.
S3 - I found the test somewhat easier - it was a lot more logic/maths based than
science based. However due to it being maths based, it was difficult to get through
questions accurately with the time constraint, therefore a lot of rounding occurred
and in some cases had to guess answers that were ‘closest’ to what you found in
order to move on quickly enough.
I guessed ~3 questions in S1 and ~17 questions in S3.

4. What were the general topics of the essay questions?

From what I can recall:
Essay A - trust and respect in society.
Essay B - how our habits define who we are.

5. Any other feedback you'd like to give.

Bathroom breaks were poorly organised.
We had 30 minutes for lunch and they asked us to return to the building at 1.15pm.
The regulators were 25 minutes late with everyone waiting outside. Once they let us
into building, we only had 5-10 minutes for everyone to register and use the
bathroom. Not everyone had a chance to go to the bathroom before the test and they
were about to close the doors on those who were still queuing for the bathroom.

My advice to other attendees is to go bathroom first and then register. A lot of

people registered first to get it out of the way, but they had to queue the longest for
the bathroom afterwards and therefore were the last ones out - risking getting back
into the examination room.

6. Your guide was really helpful and definitely calmed me down before the test!
Thank you :)

Hi Peter,

Your book was extremely helpful, particularly in two regards. Firstly, to be able to see
all the information relevant to GEM programmes in my area in one place (especially
the previous year's minimum GAMSAT scores) was very helpful. Secondly, to have the
most important science topics listed in one place was invaluable. I returned to this
again and again over the course of my revision, and was checking my progress against
it right up until the week of the exam. It is concise and accurate.

1. I sat it in Dublin. As far as I can remember, they started at 9.30am. We were

asked to report to the centre at 8.15am.
2. Not very strict with drinks etc., but it really did depend on which invigilator was
around. Some were more strict than others. They were very strict with phones.
3. Paper 1 and 2 were exactly as expected. No surprises, and pretty much entirely
in line with ACER example papers. Section 3 however was wild: none of what I
was led to believe was typically 'GAMSAT' came up. There was no pH, no
buoyancy, no lenses, no Hardy-Weinberg, very little rates of reaction, no
 nuclear decay, no sound/decibels. Very odd. A big emphasis was placed on
deducing from long, detailed stimulus material, with some questions being next
to impossible to figure out in the given time. Many people around me had
clearly struggled with time. When the final 10 minutes were announced, there
was a lot of frantic guessing going on.
4. Essay questions were, roughly, A: the importance of trust and respect,
particularly in government, and the relationship between trust and respect. B:
'We are too busy these days, and therefore less happy than we used to be', 'we
need to allow more time to relax'.
5. From conversations after section 3 it seemed that this year's science paper was
particularly hard. Those who were resitting (some even for the third time or
more) confirmed that the previous sittings hadn't been so hard. The difficulty
level of the ACER sample papers was far below that of the actual paper on the
day. Papers 1 and 2 were fine, and not out of the ordinary.

I hope this is helpful for future GAMSAT sitters.

Hi,
Thank you very much! I found your book really helpful, especially for Section 2.
1. I sat the exam at the Royal Horticulture Halls in London
2. No, I brought glucose drink but other people brought protein shakes and other coloured
drinks. However, I tried to use a big eraser as a ruler to look at the graph and was told off
immediately (they even recorded my personal number but I haven’t heard anything back from
Acer)

3. Section 1 - Easier, Section 2-Harder, Section- 3 Easier

4. Belief/ entertainment (using synonyms of the keywords)

I hope it helps,

Regards,

Hi Dr Griffiths,

1) Sydney Olympic Park, think started around 9am?

2) they checked before section 1. Not so strict for s3. They just wanted to get ppl in
quickly.

3) harder

4) task A : family size task b : role models

5) section 1 lots of medical texts, s3 : graphs and data.

Hi Peter,

1. Where did you sit the test and what time did it start in your centre?
- Caulfield Racecourse - Melbourne, Australia
2. Was there strict checking of drinks, pens pencils etc?
- Yes, stainless steel water bottles and four colour pens confiscated. I was even asked to turn out my pockets when I
went to the toilet before section 1 had started.
3. Did you think the test was easier/harder than the ACER practice tests?
- Harder
4. What were the general topics of the essay questions?
1. Over population
2. Celebrity and influence
5. Any other feedback you'd like to give.
- No thanks

Hi Peter,

I did sit the GAMSAT last weekend.

1) I sat the GAMSAT in Liverpool, England, UK.

Told to arrive for 08:15. I think we started pretty much on time possibly about 09:05?

2) I didn't see them go desk to desk checking. I sat in Sept 18 and our bags were placed in racks
at the sides of the hall. This time (March 19) they opened up a side room and a lady stood at the
doorway. She noticed in the second half that I didn't have a bottle of water with me and asked if
I needed a refill so she must have been keeping some sort of eye.

I did notice in both Sept 18 and this time the invigilators were very discreet when talking to
students compared to some exams I've sat in my education. So checking could have been taking
place but not made obvious.
I know I approached them personally last year as I didn't get a response from GAMSAT office
asking if I could have a sugary drink and my medication with me. They were perfectly fine with
that and fine with me having medication under my desk this year.

Sept 18 I know the girl next to me had a clear but pretty well equipped pencil case on her desk.
S3 I spotted her pull out a yellow highlighter. An invigilator did slow down by her desk. I don't
know if anything was said but she continued to use it. I don't know how long for as obviously
you don't want to appear as though you are looking at others.

3) I was doing another dry run this time due to serious ill health complications so I didn't
complete the practice test booklets.

If it's any help this test March 19 in S3 seemed to be completely reason based. One could go
over and over an unfamiliar question and attempt to pry the answer out, or at least make a
better guess. Whereas Sept 18 absolutely required you to have the prerequisite levels of
knowledge for each subject. I think more closely resembling the purple booklet from ACER.

4) Section A the topics related to respect for Authority, the scrutiny of Authority.

Section B the topics covered Recreation and identity.

5) I only wear glasses for driving and my eye sight isn't awful. It didn't even cross my mind I
would be sat so far away from a clock that I wouldn't be able to see the time. Your 'on the day'
information in your book is really helpful so that might be worth a mention as we ended up with
one of the invigilators coming round every 20 min to tell me the time. Was just extra pressure
you don't need!

The rest of the points I have to make are really about things I noticed from being in one of the
GAMSAT Facebook Study Groups. I think your book has an Instagram and Facebook account
that I follow? These observations are things I feel your book covers, but students using different
resources aren't benefiting from. I don't know if they would be useful for to use for
advertising/reaching out to people so I thought I would mention them just in case they may be
helpful.

A) I noticed a lot of people looking for direction rather than rote learning. Obviously your
resource provides this. When I simply said the Griffiths Review taught you how to answer the
GAMSAT, covered all question types, and contained all the equations needed, I got a lot of
messages asking for your website.

B) It was surprising to see the amount of people who don't think there is any level of
prerequisite knowledge required for S3. So many resources focus on the word 'reasoning' that
many were shocked when they tried the purple booklet and got stuck. I think your book
adequately explains all the way through when a student is required to 'do extra' and prepare in
advance. There was no shock for me even when I sat the GAMSAT the first time in Sept 18. There
were even a handful of people complaining about the amount of maths in March 19 sitting.
Saying they were going to be doctors not engineers!

C) Your S2 section is fantastic and really in depth. Essays are by no means my strongest subject
but even in the week leading up to the exam as we were sharing essays for evaluation by the
group, I was shocked at the variation in quality. Most just needed a pointer as to what ACER
would be looking for and they returned with a far better essay, others though were struggling to
produce more than half a page of A4. No evidence of wider reading, titles not related to
anything in the text, conclusion not concluding any points made. One lady even just wrote a
sentence for each statement and tried to pull them together into an essay.
I know you offer courses throughout the year so I don't know if it would damage that line of
business, but certainly advertising some things you cover in that section, especially as it get's
closer may be good?
Just thinking of a couple of people who did write well overall but just needed the guidance you
offer in your S2 section. Like the man who just wrote independent paragraphs, wonderful
content but no transition between them. We spent a good half hour exchanging messages on
how to do that.
Then another person who came up with excellent arguments but jumped everywhere and he
ended up by concluding using another argument he had made no reference to on paper.

The only reason I have mentioned these above when you do include them yourself, is that the
people concerned were saying "I need something to show me, to help me. How do I transition?
Where do I get evidence from? How do you plan and write in 30 minutes?" I kept saying
Griffiths Review would help and passing out your website link. So I just wondered if targeting
specific requests that people are making in the forums would appeal to them?

I know your web page points all the above out. The aim of your resource and what you include,
but I never could have imagined the depth your resource went to. Other resources claim to be
everything you need. They vaguely promise to cover everything. These students were looking
for specifics. I think as the exam draws closer, and the anxiety increases students are left with a
handful of revision problems they have prioritised. They don't want to part with money if they
are just going to get another massive book that skims the top. Yours is worth parting with the
money for. Even in the final days as it offers in depth specifics in easy to digest and retain
chunks.

Hope you don't mind me mentioning the above, feel free to pull it apart for a positive review. I
hope to see a lot more students using your book this time around preparing for Sept 19 and I
will definitely be recommending it.

Thank you for your help.

HI Dr Griffiths

I personally found your book to the best resource I found in preparation for the gamsat,
particularly for sections 1 &2.

Hope the following answers your questions;

1) I sat the test in Liverpool and we began section 1 at about 9.20 am

2) They were not strict at all in regards to drinks and happen to see someone with
snacks as well as an energy drink at their desk.
3) I would say that the section 1 questions were more difficult given that the extracts
were much longer and there were very few short extracts that were quick to answer.
Section 3 seemed also to be more logic based and you did not seem to need to know
much pre-requisite science and so wasn't necessarily easier or harder than acer just
very different question styles. For section 2 you are only given 4 quotes not 5 but the
style of quotes are very similar to that of acer.
4) Essay topics were respect and recreation
5) I would suggest for anyone sitting the GAMSAT to really focus on being able to
answer logic based questioning and to also read your review for really useful tips on
how to tackle the exam on the day.

Kind Regards

1. Where did you sit the test and what time did it start in your centre?

Sat the exam in London Royal Botanical Halls. Started at 9.40am

2. Was there strict checking of drinks, pens pencils etc?
Not of drink I brought in my lucosade which was orange in colour however these were in
clear bottles. I brought some sweets with wrappers off to boost my sugar levels.
3. Did you think the test was easier/harder than the ACER practice tests?

Section 1 and 2 were similar and the prose had more normal language and was easier to
understand and some relevant to current medicine.

Section 3 was very different from the Acer papers in that there was very little knowledge
you actually had to know to actually answer a question.

The questions were doable but one question required several steps to get an answer which
was time consuming!

Lots of data interpretation and graphical analysis. You probably did not even require I dare
say it could prepare for Section 3 in terms of studying factual knowledge... having factual
knowledge simply gave you the courage to enter the exam room and understand the text
more but I don’t think it gave you a cutting edge advantage over others. In any case I doubt
whether anyone could finish answering all the questions in the time frame. I managed
about 70 out if 110 and guessed the rest with 50% going to C and 50% going to B.
4. What were the general topics of the essay questions?

A theme about Trust to write about can’t remember the second essay!

1) London. Can’t remember start time, but got there at 8.30 (8.15 start) and still had time to get
a coffee or something like that

2) Not that I noticed but I didn’t chance it. I had a de-labelled Volvic touch of fruit. I also had
some dextrose tabs on the desk, but out of packet. They sort of looked like erasers...

3) Section one and two were on par with practice. Section three was nothing like the practice
test. Extremely experimental and data driven section, with lots of text. Never run out of time on
S3 before and I strictly timed myself in practice, but this time I had no chance and guessed 5-6
questions and “guesstimated” another 5-6. My friend who also sat it felt the same. It almost felt
like a section 1, with the amount of interpretation and inference needed at times. Theoretical
physics and mathematics were more prevalent than I expected.

4) Essay topics focused on surveillance/accountability/trusting authority, and then

rest/relaxation

5) Pretty much as expected. In London it was easy to find somewhere to eat at lunch that wasn’t
busy. Managed to go for a Nando’s and a small coffee and then a dextrose tab on entry to
mitigate any insulin crash. Time flew in the exam as well - section 3 was over in no time. Venue
was nice - bright and quiet.

Book was very helpful, glad I bought it. Useful practice materials and tips, like practice using an
answer grid rather than just circling on the paper since it’s deceptive how much time that takes.
Science section was great for general guidance, although unfortunately in this exam it was a bit
off on the topics. Essay structure and guidance there was really good. Definitely would
recommend it to anyone else sitting it.

Will see how the results are in a month or so!

Thanks a lot,
Hello,

To answer your questions:

1. London. Arrival time 8:15, exam started around 9:15-9:30.

2. No
3. Sections 1 and 2 we about the same as the practice tests. Section 3 was harder than the
practice tests.
4. Our relationship with, and trust of, our leaders, and is increased recreation time a good or a
bad thing.
5. It seems like section 3 of the exam is shifting further away from being able to recall scientific
information and equations. The questions were much more focused on interpreting the
information provided in the booklet, making fast reading and comprehension skills a big
advantage.

All the best,

Hi Peter,

I did sit gamsat last week and definitely enjoyed it. This was my 2nd time sitting it and I’m
hoping it’s the last!

Answers to your questions:

1. I sat gamsat in Perth, Western Australia and despite being advised to be there at 0815hrs, we
didn’t actually start until 0920hrs.

2. Very strict conditions- witnessed removal of highlighters, checking of watches, requests for
removal of bottle labels, review of dictionaries.

3. Complexity was perhaps comparable. There was a lot of emphasis on medical literature this
time. Section I had Perhaps 2 poems, 2-3 cartoons and either graphical interpretation of
medical conditions or passages based on medical biographies or case related passages. Section
II was straight forward and then section III was again heavy on medical cases/bio/literature, few
physics questions and as always, organic chemistry was well represented in the exam.

4. Essay questions were based on parenting and the environment. If I recall correctly statements
such as ‘if you arrive home from work and the kids are still alive, you’ve done a good job’ or ‘you
can only become what you are taught’ and for environment, ‘restrictions on family size is the
only way to protect the future of the environment’

5. Previously I had paid silly money for a ‘pack’ of preparation materials with little benefit and
then in January I found your book and it changed my perspective on the whole thing. As you
will be aware, traditionally, the aim is rote learning but you cannot succeed in gamsat if your aim
is to just memorise as much as you can and hope for the right questions. The exam plan you
create is more important.

The essay guide in particular I found increasingly useful and I would have liked to have been
part of the online essay course but I was too late to join. Either way I completed at least 2
essays each day based on your format and this gave me great confidence for the day of the
exam. Again.... planning!
For the time poor... focus only on organic chemistry for subject review, especially for the quick
and easy points from nomenclature based questions.

Hope this helps,

Kind regards,

Hi,

1. Liverpool. Just after 9 I think.

2. Not massively. They just told us to remove any other items. But someone next to me asked to
keep medicine and tissues and they said it was fine.

3. On par. Section 1 was easier, section 3 was harder.

Regards

Peter,

we were asked to be at the test centre at 8.15am (RCSI, Dublin). To be fair they were very
prepared and I was signed in and sitting at my desk at 8.30am.

There was no checking of pencil cases or pens etc. I brought a bottle of water and had already
taken the label off but no one wanted to see it. I opened my pencil case as it wasn't clear and
was told- " don't need to see it" .. I know that's at variance of other test centres.

The ACER papers were no where near the real exam,,, even the newest version booklet.... this
exam was on an entirely different stratosphere.

I passed it 3 yrs ago and got a place in Limerick - but I left the college as its a terrible set up - I
would never recommend it to anyone. You get 30mins lectures a week and you're expected to
know topics like neuroanatomy (parkinsons, ascending/descending tracts and the 12 laminae
tracts at each spinal level). its a real teach yourself with zero support... so hence I resat for UCD
or RCSI who actually have lectures etc

If there anything I haven't touched on in the review, please drop me an email or a call on
WhatsApp.

Hi peter
Here is my feedback

1. Where did you sit the test and what time did it
start in your centre? Limerick Ireland started at
9:10

2. Was there strict checking of drinks, pens pencils

etc? Yes
3. Did you think the test was easier/harder than the
ACER practice tests? Harder

4. What were the general topics of the essay

questions? Can’t remember

5. Any other feedback you'd like to give.

Section 3 was very tough but as a first time sitter I
now know what to focus on and have better idea
for next time. Also I really enjoyed your book and
found it very helpful.

OK that's all the feedback I received, I hope you find it useful.

All the best,

Dr Peter Griffiths

www.gamsatreview.com