If you’re deciding to go to medical school as a postgraduate student, you will be preparing to sit the gruelling 6 hour Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (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 1 hour. Despite how long the exam is, most students do not finish the final section, so improving your speed and strategy on the exam is very important for success. MedView’s GAMSAT packages consist of the Best Resources and Customisable Curriculum Support.

Typically this exam is sat in person twice a year - March and September at authorised testing centres across Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. New Zealand only has one testing centre and it is only open for the March GAMSAT exam.

However with COVID-19 government restrictions this has been disrupted. Find out how it could have affected you!

This year’s March sitting of the exam was delivered remotely, meaning you could sit the exam from the comfort of your own home, wherever you were in the world, while on video with an exam supervisor. Confusion has occured as the September exam is advised to be held virtually. This is NOT the same as remotely. What this means is that you will sit the exam on a supplied computer at an authorised testing centre.

Since COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted in cities across Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America remote proctoring is NOT being offered for the September sitting of the GAMSAT.

What this means is that the exam must be sat in person at an authorised testing centre in your country. New Zealand DOES NOT have a testing centre for the September GAMSAT.

This means for New Zealand students who are unable to travel due to government travel restrictions they are unable to sit the GAMSAT until March 2021.

However, this could be a blessing in disguise for your overall score!

The purpose of the GAMSAT is to assess your ability to analyse writing and graphical material, measuring skills and knowledge acquired over a long period of time, as well as the ability to reason, make logical decisions and problem solve - skills that cannot be gained from last-minute cramming! Since GPA is out of 7 and the GAMSAT is out of 100, increasing your GPA is typically more beneficial and easier, BUT:

Some universities only use your GAMSAT score in offering you an interview, so use this extra time to improve both!