How to Get into Postgraduate Medicine
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The postgraduate medical school application process is long, complicated and very stressful for students. This guide is designed to provide you with all the information you will need to prepare for the process ahead, so you can focus solely on studying!
GAMSAT
The first and most important element of your postgraduate application is sitting the gruelling 6 hour long GAMSAT exam. The GAMSAT is difficult because it’s the longest medical school admissions test in the world - 3 hours of science, 2 hours of humanities reasoning and a sprint to write two 500-word essays in one hour. Despite how long the GAMSAT exam is, most students do not finish the final section, so having speed and strategy on the GAMSAT exam is very important for success.
MedView’s GAMSAT students are 4x more likely to score in the top 15%. Book a free consultation and start your journey to success in medical school admissions!
Application
When applying for postgraduate entry medicine in Australia, there is one centralised online application portal - GEMSAS. The Graduate Entry Medical Schools Admission System. GEMSAS is run by the GAMSAT consortium, which comprises of 10 out the 13 postgraduate medical schools in Australia which include:
- Melbourne University
- Deakin University
- Australian National University
- Wollongong University
- University of Notre Dame
- Macquarie University
- Griffith University
- Queensland University
- University of Western Australia
The three universities that aren’t apart of GEMSAS include:
- Sydney University
- Flinders
- Monash
(Sydney and Flinders require the GAMSAT exam and direct application and Monash requires students to have completed their undergraduate degree at Monash).
This system allows you to choose from three to six medical schools, then uses calculations to allocate an interview and medical school offer based on your eligibility and highest preferred postgraduate medical school. You are offered a maximum of one interview. Your application to GEMSAS is a single online application form, a preference list of up medical schools, as well as your undergraduate degree transcript.
GAMSAT Scores
Upon completion of the GAMSAT exam you will receive a score for each section and an overall percentage score which ranks your score in comparison to all other students sitting the exam. Your GAMSAT score is valid for two years following the test date and you can sit the exam twice per admissions cycle (March and September).
Your GAMSAT score breakdown - the score for each section is what is most important in your GEMSAS application, as different universities put different weightings on each section. For example, most universities apart from the University of Melbourne, the University of Western Sydney, and the University of Queensland use the traditional weighting system, which weighs Section Three twice as much as Section One and Two.
To complicate things further, each university accepts different ranges of GAMSAT score. To make sure your preference list is favourable to your skills and GAMSAT abilities, MedView’s postgraduate entry application support program can help. Specifically designed by postgraduate medical students and admissions experts, this program will help you better succeed in your application.
Hot tip: To make sure you have a strong score against this weighting system, it is important to make sure you’re disproportionately strong in Section Three, or particularly poor in either Section One or Two. Want more hot tips? Click here to speak to our team for free today!
GPA
Another element of admission into postgraduate medical school is the GPA hurdle. Your GPA is your Grade Point Average, which is the weighted mean of all your grades achieved in the final 3 years equivalent of full time undergraduate study.
Firstly, a lot of people believe that you can only apply to postgraduate medicine if you have completed a medical related degree - e.g., Nursing, Biomedical Science etc. However this is not correct, yes there are discrepancies between universities in terms of GPA cut offs, but there is no advantage or disadvantage to the degree achieved, or the university in which your degree was achieved.
However, your degree must have been completed in the last 10 years, unless postgraduate study has commenced. It is at the discretion of the university as to whether your postgraduate study is considered in the calculation of your GPA but most of the time, it is your last three years that are considered.
It would be correct to assume Honours years also add a level of complexity to your application. The University of Melbourne and the University of Western Australia require your Honours to be completed by mid year of your application cycle for it to be considered in your GPA calculation. The University of Melbourne, Deakin University and Macquarie University will also only consider specific Honours subjects, not your overall Honours grade and this information will not be released to you prior to your postgraduate entry application.
Hot tip: Save yourself the stress with MedView . Each MedView student receives an Educational Coordinator specifically designed to take the stress of applications away from you!
To determine your GPA weighted grade the following calculation is used:
Most Recent GPA = Weighted x3
Most Recent -1 GPA = Weighted x2
Most Recent -2 GPA = Weighted x1
Your average GPA is calculated by dividing the result by 6. GEMSAS places a higher emphasis on the latter years of study which is reflected in their calculations, as they assume the level of intelligence is higher the longer you study.
However, several universities calculate the GPA differently. The University of Western Australia weighs every year the same and does not require a competitive GPA just a threshold over 5.0. UWA, also used a system called FTE which fairly evaluates all students. This means a minimum of two subjects/courses are required to be taken in the final semester/in your application semester in order to achieve a 25% FTE and be considered for a place.
Portfolios
The portfolio is only applicable to two universities, but plays an essential part in their consideration process. The University of Notre Dame and the University of Wollongong’s consider your portfolio alongside your GPA and GAMSAT score, although the weighting of the portfolio is unknown.
Hot tip: Adding an extra dimension into the application means there is less overall emphasis on your GPA and GAMSAT score. Want more hot tips? Speak to an Academic Advisor today!
The University of Notre Dame is a catholic institution, meaning the university puts an emphasis on education within the context of catholic values. They welcome students of all religious backgrounds, as long as the student has an understanding for the values of ethical and service based values, such as compassion, respect and social justice. If successful, all students must complete a Bioethics paper.
The University of Wollongong on the other hand, has a strong focus around rural, regional and remote medicine, preparing doctors for a range of settings across Australia and internationally. They chose students who have diverse backgrounds and are comfortable with living in rural settings or have ties to rural communities and schooling.
Personal Statements and Extra Requirements
The University of Notre Dame also requires a personal statement - along with your GPA, GAMSAT and portfolio - where you must outline your reasons for pursuing medicine, as well as why Notre Dame is the best choice for you. It is important to create an application that represents your character while also demonstrating the asking values.
The University of Wollongong requires a video which is similar to a UCAT situational judgement question, used to determine personal and professional traits that are suited for a career in medicine. These include empathy, communication, ethics and problem solving.
Deakin University prefers students who have a background in healthcare or a history of study at Deakin University, residing in the Geelong area or are financially disadvantaged.
Australian National University prefers students who have completed Honours, Masters or PhD study.
Griffith will award an instant 7.0 GPA to anyone with a PhD and a maximum GPA for each year of full time Masters course by research.
Preferencing
It is important to note all these aspects are considered in your overall application and they work together to bring strengths to weaker aspects.
MedView believes in a holistic approach to medical school admissions, meaning we surround the student with a team of experts to help develop their candidacy and skills in all pillars of the journey to medical school.
Our mission is not to help students to just succeed in their medical school admissions, but to create students to become top doctors with lifelong leadership, skills and connections!
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The UCAT
The UCAT, or the University Clinical Aptitude Test is the medical school admission test required for many universities in Australia and New Zealand. The UCAT is designed to assess applicants for the aptitude, attitudes and beliefs required of a doctor. In order to defeat the UCAT - we should understand what it is. First off, it’s a two hour computer based exam. There are 5 separately timed subtests - Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning, Abstract Reasoning and Situational Judgement. In this blog we break down each of the sections and offer guidance on how to prepare for this important exam.
Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning is meant to assess your ability to read something and draw appropriate conclusions. You can see why this would be important to a doctor - you’re part of a multidisciplinary team and will have to communicate effectively. In addition, doctors have to keep current with new research and draw reasonable conclusions from published findings. Decision making involves 11 text excerpts with 4 questions each, meaning this section has 44 questions in 21 minutes - that means an average of 29 seconds per question. That doesn’t even take reading the stem into account!
Decision Making
Decision Making is essentially data interpretation from graphs, tables, text and charts. You don’t need to have background knowledge on any subject, because part of what they’re testing is your ability to understand new information. Can you think of a time a doctor might have to do the same? This section has 29 questions in 31 minutes - an average of 64 seconds per question. Compare the timing of section to verbal reasoning, it’s more than double. Consider the length of time per question as an indication of how much the test writers want you to analyse.
Quantitative Reasoning
Quantitative Reasoning is a straightforward mathematics section - there are nine scenarios each with four questions. You’ll have access to an on screen calculator - which is functional but pretty clunky! You’ll have to strike a balance between using mental maths to be quick, and keeping your wits about you, and staying accurate. This section has 36 questions in 24 minutes - an average of 40 seconds per question. It’s not a lot of time to question your maths abilities!
Abstract Reasoning
Abstract Reasoning is used to evaluate your ability to locate patterns and understand logic, separate from your language abilities. If you’ve seen the guides online with pictures asking you to find a pattern - that’s abstract reasoning. This section is sometimes hard for students to grasp, because it’s such a different set of skills. It’s also probably the biggest struggle with time management. This section has 55 questions in 13 minutes - that’s only 14 seconds per question. Don’t even think about going into this section unprepared!
Situational Judgement
Situational Judgement assesses your judgement and character in different situations - the situations are usually clinical or education based. Either situations you’ve likely been in, or a situation you could be involved in future. Then you’ll have to evaluate the appropriateness, importance or consequences of the situation. It’s one way for universities to evaluate the characteristics that are important for future doctors! Situational Judgement has 69 questions in 26 minutes - an average of 25 seconds per question.
With so much to do - how can I set myself up for success?
Prepare
This sounds like a no brainer, but preparation is the most important thing you can do if you want to succeed on the UCAT. Going over questions is one thing but the most effective thing you can do is to practice under exam conditions. That means doing computer based exams - so when you get to test day, you know what to expect. Luckily MedView has a bank of questions.
Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Time is a precious resource when you’re preparing for medical school admissions - you have to continue doing well in your studies, prepare yourself for an interview, and master a new exam. There’s not infinite time - so you have to learn how to study smarter, not just harder. So many students waste their time by continuing to drill skills that they’ve already mastered. It’s important to identify the weak points that need more TLC.
Learn Skills
Each type of question requires a specific psychometric approach to understand and answer so quickly. Skills and strategies to identify the problem and solve the challenging question are essential for success. MedView has a range of 1:1 tutoring, group workshops, practice exams and questions alongside our spiral learning curriculum to help students develop the skills necessary to succeed in time conditions. Our UCAT students are 5x more likely to receive an interview offer.
Sitting full-length practice exams under simulated conditions is the most effective preparation for developing UCAT skills. As this will familiarise yourself with the extreme time pressures, as well as allowing you to practise concentrating on psychometric skills for two hours. It is also important to practice using the computer-based platform that will be used when you sit UCAT as well.
Seek Help
Find friends that have taken the test before and ask for their experience. Better yet, schedule a free Academic Assessment with MedView today! When you start your journey as a MedView student, you are allocated an Education Coordinator who has experience helping hundreds of students get into med school. They’ll help you stay on track with your goals, offer you support, and help you succeed on your path to medical school.
Next Steps
The UCAT is an important exam that is key to medical school admission for undergraduates. We recommend starting your UCAT preparation early and integrating it into your study load to give yourself the best opportunity to succeed. If you’d like to learn more about the UCAT or how to get into Medical School, check out our free eBooks and blogs!
- What is the UCAT?
- How Universities use your UCAT Results
- A Quick Guide to Australia Medicine eBook
- A Quick Guide to New Zealand Medicine eBook
- How to Prepare for the UCAT
- What UCAT scores will get me into med?
MedView offers a range of UCAT preparation courses as well as personalised 1:1 tutoring with our expert team. If you would like to know more about the UCAT and how MedView can help, get in touch today.
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What can you do before the year starts?
Before the year starts, it is vital that you understand that the journey to becoming a doctor is a long and arduous process. Medicine is a life-long commitment whose pathway extends beyond the 6 years of study. It includes a progression from a house officer to a registrar, and application onto training schemes if you opt for the surgical pathway.
The vast majority of people who apply for medicine, do not have a clear picture of what they want to do in the future. This uncertainty is not something to worry about now – you have plenty of time to figure out exactly what you want to do. There is something in medicine for everyone. If you are still uncertain about the medical pathway beyond the 6 years of study, I would recommend doing further research.
Another thing you can do over the summer break is to identify your motivation to become a doctor. If it’s for the money, you may not be in the correct profession - it will be at least 10-12 years until you start earning the big bucks that all doctors are known for! If you have an inherent nature to help people and seek to make our society healthier, then you are on the right track.
Once your head is in the right place, enjoy your summer! The year will belong, and you will have to make social sacrifices to make your studies a priority. Make the most of the time you have by seeing friends and family, as you will inevitably see less of them throughout the year. You are likely to experience burnout sometime during the year, so optimising your rest now is important.
The single most effective way to distance yourself from your competitors is to start early and hard. After you have rested throughout December and into the new year, it is time to get started and get ahead. The Flying Start Course offered by MedView was my ticket to success. It is a highly intensive programme starting in late January that covers the first 6 weeks of content for the three core papers in the first semester. The advantages of this course are numerous:
- The most valuable aspect of Flying Start is the content covered. As the first semester contains 3 out of the 4 core papers, it is so important to get a good start. An early lapse within the first few weeks can completely derail your entire year. Being exposed to similar content ahead of time builds your confidence and gives you the opportunity to begin learning before others.
- There is a radically different teaching style from high school to university. Flying Start emulates the style you are accustomed to, while simultaneously teaching university material. This eases your transition and places students into a more comfortable and familiar environment.
- You can meet other motivated people. You may have heard the horror stories of people sabotaging each other, taking their notes and hiding their bags. While these are mostly exaggerated, there will still be those who resort to other measures to gain an advantage. The people doing Flying Start will be motivated just like you, and eager to get ahead. Working together and building these strong relationships before the year starts means that you have a better support group in place. I have met several bright individuals who were passionate and together, we were able to navigate the difficult year and succeed as a group!
MedView believes in a holistic approach to medical school admissions, meaning we surround the student with a team of experts to help develop their candidacy and skills in all three major pillars in their journey to medical school, and now it’s even more accessible with the MedView Hub App!
Over the last decade there’s been a mass adoption of smartphones and a shift in the way people behave online and communicate. Australians are spending more time online, often using multiple screens, and consuming vast amounts of content each day. And it’s only going up!
Recent figures show that almost eight out of ten Australians use social media, and 87% of them use their mobile phones to access it. Fifty-nine percent of Australians access social media everyday or most days, and over a third of people check social media more than five times per day.
We often go online to chat with friends and family, share photos, or be entertained by cat videos. But the very same platforms we use to socialise can also be used to gather knowledge that we can apply in our offline lives. One of the areas where users can reap the benefits is online communities. MedView prides themselves on finding the best tutor, strategist or consultant for each student whether they be in Australia, New Zealand or the United Kingdom and having an online community platform allows even more core benefits for our students in a shorter amount of time. Now students can access over 320 tutors, strategists and consultants and get answers to their Synapse questions, interact in exclusive workshops, and most importantly make friends. The meaningful relationships with other members of the community increases knowledge and collective wisdom.
The MedView Hub App is our own online community platform for students, parents, tutors, and alumni to create a network of opportunities to participate in smart, focused conversation on specific medical school admissions topics (unlike the Instagram and Facebook chatter).
Over the last decade there’s been a mass adoption of smartphones and a shift in the way people behave online and communicate. Australians are spending more time online, often using multiple screens, and consuming vast amounts of content each day. And it’s only going up!
Recent figures show that almost eight out of ten Australians use social media, and 87% of them use their mobile phones to access it. Fifty-nine percent of Australians access social media everyday or most days, and over a third of people check social media more than five times per day.
We often go online to chat with friends and family, share photos, or be entertained by cat videos. But the very same platforms we use to socialise can also be used to gather knowledge that we can apply in our offline lives. One of the areas where users can reap the benefits is online communities. MedView prides themselves on finding the best tutor, strategist or consultant for each student whether they be in Australia, New Zealand or the United Kingdom and having an online community platform allows even more core benefits for our students in a shorter amount of time. Now students can access over 320 tutors, strategists and consultants and get answers to their Synapse questions, interact in exclusive workshops, and most importantly make friends. The meaningful relationships with other members of the community increases knowledge and collective wisdom.
The MedView Hub App is our own online community platform for students, parents, tutors, and alumni to create a network of opportunities to participate in smart, focused conversation on specific medical school admissions topics (unlike the Instagram and Facebook chatter).
Find out more and begin your journey to medical school by speaking with a MedView Academic Advisor for free today!
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