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GAMSAT ® physics is about 20% of GAMSAT ® Section 3, yet it often separates average from competitive scores. Most candidates have GAMSAT ® Biology or GAMSAT ® Chemistry backgrounds and skip GAMSAT ® Physics — do not. GAMSAT ® Physics is Year 12, not first-year university, and physics-style maths and graphs also appear inside GAMSAT ® Biology and GAMSAT ® Chemistry stems.
This GAMSAT ® physics study guide covers the practical GAMSAT ® physics syllabus themes, GAMSAT ® physics question types, formulae you can use without a calculator or exam booklet, and how to prepare for GAMSAT ® physics efficiently. Official proportions and Year 12 assumed knowledge are in ACER’s GAMSAT ® Information Booklet. Keep the GAMSAT ® physics formula sheet beside your notes, use the GAMSAT ® study syllabus for the topic checklist, then practise with free GAMSAT ® practice questions. For exam basics, see what is the GAMSAT ®?
Many students are unfamiliar with GAMSAT ® Section 3 physics and understandably struggle with the format. If you are not sure where to start, our expert tutors, Kayley and Jonathan, have summarised this GAMSAT ® physics preparation guide in the video below.
GAMSAT ® Physics is included because medical and health-professional reasoning depends on how physical systems behave: pressure and airflow in the lungs, blood flow through vessels, electricity in nerves and devices, radiation in imaging, and energy transfer in every measurement. The exam is not asking you to become a physicist. It is asking whether you can take Year 12 principles and apply them to unfamiliar evidence.
Many students skip GAMSAT ® physics because they did not take high-school physics, have not used it since Year 12, or believe physics and medicine are unrelated. Those reasons do not justify leaving marks on the table. Few candidates have a physics background, so these items often separate an average Section 3 result from a competitive one. A few correctly answered physics questions can move your standing, especially if the rest of the cohort avoids the topic.
The same relationships appear in GAMSAT ® biology and GAMSAT ® chemistry stems: resistance versus diameter in a vessel, buoyancy and density, current in a circuit attached to a biological sensor. ACER describes Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences as assessing the ability to identify knowledge in new contexts, analyse and interpret data, and solve problems. That framing is in the official GAMSAT ® structure and content page and the Information Booklet. For the wider admissions picture, GAMSAT ® Physics preparation sits inside the pathway to medicine in Australia rather than being a standalone memorisation task.
GAMSAT ® Physics makes up approximately 20% of GAMSAT ® Section 3. ACER’s Information Booklet states that Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences is Chemistry 40%, Biology 40% and Physics 20%, with 75 four-option multiple-choice questions in 150 minutes. In simple terms, that means roughly 15 GAMSAT ® Physics-labelled questions and about two minutes per GAMSAT ® Section 3 item. The exact GAMSAT ® Physics count should not be treated as a rigid number.
Units are often mixed. A stem may look biological because it shows blood flow or lung volume, then ask you to use pressure, resistance or a graph. That is why GAMSAT ® Section 3 physics should not be studied as an isolated subject, and why 40–50% of Section 3 items can still need basic arithmetic or a physics relationship. Many medical schools pay close attention to Section 3, so physics performance can influence overall competitiveness. Our GAMSAT ® scores guide explains how results are reported.
Questions that are poorly answered by the cohort can carry more weight under item-response scoring. Physics items are often in that group. For the scoring method, see the scores guide and item-response theory. A 10-year retrospective also found that graduates of physical-science courses (physics, maths) were more likely to perform strongly in Section 3 than biomedical or social-science colleagues — another reason not to treat 20% as optional.
The GAMSAT ® Physics level required generally corresponds to Year 12, A-level or Leaving Certificate equivalent. That is a lower official knowledge bar than the first-year university level ACER sets for biology and chemistry. It does not mean the questions are easy. ACER’s Information Booklet states that Section 3 focuses primarily on problem solving and using that prerequisite knowledge. ACER’s official preparation advice also recommends first-year basic-science coverage for non-science graduates, and notes that a bridging course can help if physics still feels thin.
In practical terms, “Year 12 physics” means motion graphs, Newton’s laws, energy and work, pressure and buoyancy, simple circuits, waves or optics language, radioactive decay as an exponential, and enough maths to rearrange an equation or read a log scale without a calculator. If you can explain a relationship and predict what happens when a variable changes, you are usually at a useful depth.
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| What you do need to know What you do need to know |
What you usually do not need to know What you usually do not need to know |
|---|---|
| How force, mass and acceleration relate, including equilibrium and simple torque How force, mass and acceleration relate, including equilibrium and simple torque |
University mechanics, vectors in three dimensions, or Lagrangian methods University mechanics, vectors in three dimensions, or Lagrangian methods |
| Energy, work, kinetic/potential energy and conservation of momentum Energy, work, kinetic/potential energy and conservation of momentum |
Statistical mechanics or specialist engineering energy balances Statistical mechanics or specialist engineering energy balances |
| Pressure, density, buoyancy and how vessel radius changes resistance Pressure, density, buoyancy and how vessel radius changes resistance |
Full fluid-dynamics derivations Full fluid-dynamics derivations |
| Ohm’s law, series versus parallel, charge and simple magnetic-force language Ohm’s law, series versus parallel, charge and simple magnetic-force language |
Semiconductor physics or memorised circuit catalogues Semiconductor physics or memorised circuit catalogues |
| How to read graphs, units, slopes and exponential or log relationships How to read graphs, units, slopes and exponential or log relationships |
A memorised constant table or specialist statistics unless the stem teaches the test A memorised constant table or specialist statistics unless the stem teaches the test |
This calibration matters for students preparing GAMSAT ® physics from a non-science background. You need real Year 12 foundations, but you do not need a physics major before starting questions. Science-background students should not assume coursework is enough: the exam rewards applying a simple relationship in an unfamiliar figure.
Students from all backgrounds find preparing for Section 3 challenging. Physics is often feared most, even though ACER assumes a lower knowledge level than for chemistry and biology. That lets ACER combine Year 12 physics with biology, chemistry, graphs and written rules. Though Section 3 allocates roughly 20% of questions to physics, units are often a mix of at least two sciences plus analytical reasoning.
A classic example is blood flow through an artery: how much can an elastic vessel expand when pressure rises, and how does resistance change if diameter falls? Similar questions appear in the exam and later in a medical degree. Treat GAMSAT ® physics questions as training for that style of thinking. The format can look alien — formulae, equations and graphs instead of paragraphs — but after you read the stem, the reasoning is usually the same: identify the system, the change and the evidence.
There will always be items that do not fit a mould, but these GAMSAT ® physics question types appear often. Several can sit inside one unit.
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| Question type Question type |
What it asks you to do What it asks you to do |
Typical physics cue Typical physics cue |
|---|---|---|
| Recall physics relationships Recall physics relationships |
Use a short Year 12 relationship with three variables in a direct or inverse proportion Use a short Year 12 relationship with three variables in a direct or inverse proportion |
Ohm’s law, Newton’s second law, density, intensity Ohm’s law, Newton’s second law, density, intensity |
| Words to mathematical relationships Words to mathematical relationships |
Turn a written explanation into an equation, often with little printed algebra Turn a written explanation into an equation, often with little printed algebra |
A paragraph plus a free-body or flow diagram A paragraph plus a free-body or flow diagram |
| Graph interpretation Graph interpretation |
Read axes, units, slope and intercept before applying physics Read axes, units, slope and intercept before applying physics |
Velocity–time, pressure–volume, current–voltage, or exponential decay Velocity–time, pressure–volume, current–voltage, or exponential decay |
| Algebraic manipulation Algebraic manipulation |
Choose and rearrange multivariable formulae; options are often symbols, not numbers Choose and rearrange multivariable formulae; options are often symbols, not numbers |
Two printed equations that must be combined Two printed equations that must be combined |
| Concept check Concept check |
Predict increase, decrease or no change when a variable shifts Predict increase, decrease or no change when a variable shifts |
A resistor added in parallel, or radius halved in a vessel A resistor added in parallel, or radius halved in a vessel |
A GAMSAT ® physics question is often a short experiment or device written as a story. Long clinical names, exotic apparatus or multi-step diagrams are frequently decorative. The job is to extract the system, the change and the evidence. Use this sequence when the stem looks dense:
This is a physics-specific version of the broader GAMSAT ® Section 3 stem-analysis approach. Here the extra risk is recognising a Year 12 topic and ignoring the printed rule, the units or the axes.
Worked sketch: a stem names an unfamiliar ventilator, prints P = F/A, and shows a pressure–volume loop. If the question asks what happens to pressure when the same force acts on half the area, start from the printed relationship and the SI units, not from a remembered ICU lecture. If two options pair “pressure doubles; work in joules stays the same,” both halves must match the figure.
For GAMSAT ® physics graphs, say a five-point check aloud: title, axes, units, scale, comparison. Only then bring in Newton, Ohm or buoyancy knowledge. ACER also publishes short official preparation videos that show how a Biological and Physical Sciences question is built.
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| Graph check Graph check |
What to confirm before calculating What to confirm before calculating |
|---|---|
| Title and legend Title and legend |
Which curve is the intervention, and which is the control Which curve is the intervention, and which is the control |
| Axes Axes |
What is plotted against what — velocity vs time is not the same as displacement vs time What is plotted against what — velocity vs time is not the same as displacement vs time |
| SI units SI units |
Whether the axis is in newtons, pascals, milliamps or a scaled prefix you must convert Whether the axis is in newtons, pascals, milliamps or a scaled prefix you must convert |
| Scale Scale |
Linear, log or semi-log — a straight line on a log plot is exponential decay Linear, log or semi-log — a straight line on a log plot is exponential decay |
| Limits of the data Limits of the data |
What the figure cannot show, even if a familiar physics story would fill the gap What the figure cannot show, even if a familiar physics story would fill the gap |
We can organise the GAMSAT ® physics topics that regularly appear into the families below. You only need the principles that let you predict behaviour, not a catalogue of exceptions. Waves, sound, simple heat or thermodynamics language, and basic nuclear ideas can also appear as Year 12 relationships inside mixed stems — treat them the same way: relationship first, then the figure.
When looking at these topics you only want the principles underpinning the physics.
For coverage across Section 3, use the GAMSAT ® study syllabus. For exam-style application, use free GAMSAT ® practice questions.
There is no official topic-by-topic GAMSAT ® physics syllabus from ACER. The Information Booklet gives the Section 3 mix, the Year 12 assumed knowledge level, the stimulus formats (text, maths, graphs, tables and diagrams), and the reasoning skills tested. It does not publish a lecture list of mechanics or optics chapters.
A practical topic list is still useful: it stops random study without turning Year 12 physics into a memorisation course. Use the list above for coverage, then keep depth at the “what follows if this changes?” level. The downloadable physics checklist on the study syllabus page is for planning; this page is about how those topics appear as questions.
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| GAMSAT physics topic GAMSAT physics topic |
Useful Year 12 depth Useful Year 12 depth |
Usually too deep Usually too deep |
|---|---|---|
| Motion and Newton’s laws Motion and Newton’s laws |
1D/2D graphs, F = ma in newtons, equilibrium, simple torque 1D/2D graphs, F = ma in newtons, equilibrium, simple torque |
University mechanics or 3D vector proofs University mechanics or 3D vector proofs |
| Energy, work and momentum Energy, work and momentum |
Work in joules, power in watts, kinetic/potential energy, conservation Work in joules, power in watts, kinetic/potential energy, conservation |
Statistical mechanics or specialist engineering balances Statistical mechanics or specialist engineering balances |
| Fluids and pressure Fluids and pressure |
P = F/A in pascals, density, buoyancy, radius versus resistance P = F/A in pascals, density, buoyancy, radius versus resistance |
Navier–Stokes or full haemodynamic models Navier–Stokes or full haemodynamic models |
| Circuits and electromagnetism Circuits and electromagnetism |
Ohm’s law, series vs parallel, charge, simple magnetic-force language Ohm’s law, series vs parallel, charge, simple magnetic-force language |
Semiconductor physics or memorised circuit catalogues Semiconductor physics or memorised circuit catalogues |
| Waves, optics and decay Waves, optics and decay |
Wavelength vs period on a graph, reflection/refraction idea, exponential half-life Wavelength vs period on a graph, reflection/refraction idea, exponential half-life |
Quantum optics or nuclear-engineering detail Quantum optics or nuclear-engineering detail |
| Maths and graphs Maths and graphs |
Rearrangement, scientific notation, logs, estimation without a calculator Rearrangement, scientific notation, logs, estimation without a calculator |
A memorised constant table unless the stem prints the value A memorised constant table unless the stem prints the value |
Distil each family to a relationship you can say in one sentence, then test it with questions.
People searching for a GAMSAT ® physics formula sheet are usually asking two questions: what should I practise rearranging, and what does ACER give you in the room? There is no official exam physics booklet and no calculator. Needed constants and unusual formulae are generally supplied in the stem, figure or graph. You still need the short Year 12 relationships well enough to recognise them and move the subject of the equation.
For study, use the free GAMSAT ® physics formula sheet as a fluency list, not as a second textbook. ACER lists calculators among prohibited aids in the Information Booklet. Physics items that use ratios, powers, logs or unit conversions need estimation. If a value looks ugly, look back at the figure — the exam usually prints the number you need. You may use a small whiteboard or permitted scratch paper to keep rearrangements tidy; you may not take a personal formula list into the room.
Worked sketch: the stem prints I = V/R and asks what happens to total current when a second identical resistor is added in parallel across a fixed voltage. Do not reach for a university circuit catalogue. Total resistance halves, so current doubles. If an option reports the new current in milliamps, convert the prefix before you choose. That is GAMSAT ® physics equations as the exam uses them: a short relationship, a change, and an SI-unit check.
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| Usually given in the stem Usually given in the stem |
Usually assumed as Year 12 physics Usually assumed as Year 12 physics |
|---|---|
| An unfamiliar equation, a novel constant, or a specialised unit conversion An unfamiliar equation, a novel constant, or a specialised unit conversion |
How to rearrange F = ma, V = IR, or P = F/A and check the units How to rearrange F = ma, V = IR, or P = F/A and check the units |
| A decay constant or half-life printed next to a graph A decay constant or half-life printed next to a graph |
What an exponential or log scale is doing What an exponential or log scale is doing |
| A new rule relating two variables in a medical device A new rule relating two variables in a medical device |
How to treat the printed rule as the curriculum for that unit How to treat the printed rule as the curriculum for that unit |
| Axis labels and units on a graph Axis labels and units on a graph |
How to read slope, intercept and a change of variable How to read slope, intercept and a change of variable |
The best way to study physics for the GAMSAT ® is to build just enough Year 12 language, then spend most of the remaining time on application. This is the same roadmap as Section 3 of the GAMSAT ® exam, tailored to physics stems.
Physics is hard in this exam less because the content is vast and more because of format, time pressure and mental calculation. Your study goal should be to recognise the pattern of a stem in the first 20 seconds so you know whether to calculate, read a graph, or predict a direction of change. For a broader study plan, use the GAMSAT ® preparation guide.
Become familiar with the patterns of questions so you have a rough idea how to answer an MCQ in the first 20 or so seconds.
Your approach depends on background knowledge. Recent Section 3 papers reward analytical reasoning in a scientific context more than traditional recall. That has different implications for students with a strong physics or maths degree and students preparing from a non-science background.
Start early and keep a timetable. Consistency plus questions builds the confidence physics needs. A monthly goal might be several hundred mixed MCQs plus one official ACER booklet or interactive science test. A weekly physics goal might be one topic family plus about 20 questions under a soft time cap. Spaced repetition helps both the content base and the algebraic habit. For placement of physics blocks across a week, see the GAMSAT ® study schedule.
Nobody masters every topic. Narrow the plan and spend more time on weak families — motion graphs, circuits, fluids — rather than rereading everything. Covering many questions reduces the fear that you missed a rare topic. Pair chapters with the GAMSAT ® textbooks guide if you want a book sequence rather than open-ended video hopping.
GAMSAT ® Section 3 tests logical conclusions in unfamiliar situations. Do as many practice GAMSAT ® questions as you can, and log every relationship you had to look up. Physics is full of patterns that only become fast with repetition. Official ACER e-booklets and interactive Biological and Physical Sciences tests remain the benchmark for stem style; they are listed on ACER’s preparation page.
Then simulate test conditions. The real paper alternates rapidly between biology, chemistry and physics, and between graphs, tables and long stems. Completing a full Section 1 then a rest then a timed Section 3 still trains fatigue, even though Section 2 is sat on a separate remote-proctored day. To start with free MCQs, the GAMSAT ® Free Trial includes 40 questions from the intelligent MCQ Bank. ACER also publishes short official preparation videos that show what makes a science question.
The highest-damage mistakes usually feel productive.
Science-background students are most vulnerable to overconfidence. Non-science students are more vulnerable to delaying practice until they feel “ready.” Both groups need the same correction: enough Year 12 language, then active reasoning practice.
Further tips from GAMSAT ® physics tutors:
Most students should think in phases rather than a single number of months. Physics preparation time depends on whether you have Year 12 physics, your comfort with equations, and whether you are also learning biology and chemistry. The content map is narrower than those subjects; the format still needs practice.
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| Starting point Starting point |
Content foundation phase Content foundation phase |
Practice-heavy phase Practice-heavy phase |
Mock/timed phase Mock/timed phase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strong physics or maths background Strong physics or maths background |
1–3 weeks to recalibrate to Year 12 depth and GAMSAT stems 1–3 weeks to recalibrate to Year 12 depth and GAMSAT stems |
6–10 weeks of mixed question practice 6–10 weeks of mixed question practice |
3–5 weeks before the exam 3–5 weeks before the exam |
| Some high-school physics, now rusty Some high-school physics, now rusty |
3–6 weeks of structured Year 12 review 3–6 weeks of structured Year 12 review |
8–12 weeks of practice and review 8–12 weeks of practice and review |
4–6 weeks before the exam 4–6 weeks before the exam |
| Little or no physics Little or no physics |
6–10+ weeks to build language, graphs and rearrangement 6–10+ weeks to build language, graphs and rearrangement |
10–14 weeks of GAMSAT-style questions 10–14 weeks of GAMSAT-style questions |
4–6 weeks of timed mixed Section 3 4–6 weeks of timed mixed Section 3 |
These ranges assume physics sits inside a wider GAMSAT ® preparation plan. Non-science students should not wait until biology and chemistry feel finished before starting physics graphs. These are not rules. A student studying 15 focused hours a week will progress differently from someone fitting study around full-time work. Even students with little physics should begin simple GAMSAT ® physics practice questions before they feel fully ready, because questions reveal which Year 12 relationships actually matter.
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| Weekly physics focus Weekly physics focus |
Early content phase Early content phase |
Practice-heavy phase Practice-heavy phase |
|---|---|---|
| Year 12 relationships Year 12 relationships |
About half of physics time: motion, forces, energy, fluids, one circuit idea at a time About half of physics time: motion, forces, energy, fluids, one circuit idea at a time |
Short targeted revision only after a missed MCQ Short targeted revision only after a missed MCQ |
| Graphs, units and rearrangement Graphs, units and rearrangement |
Start immediately with simple figures from Khan Academy or OpenStax Start immediately with simple figures from Khan Academy or OpenStax |
Most remaining physics time: mixed stems, SI units, scientific notation and estimation Most remaining physics time: mixed stems, SI units, scientific notation and estimation |
| Biology / chemistry overlap Biology / chemistry overlap |
Pressure, flow, density and ratios as they appear inside living or chemical systems Pressure, flow, density and ratios as they appear inside living or chemical systems |
Keep mixed Section 3 sets so physics is not practised in isolation Keep mixed Section 3 sets so physics is not practised in isolation |
If you have only six to eight hours a week for all of Section 3, do not drop physics because it is 20%. Mixed stems still use it. Use the GAMSAT ® study schedule to plan backwards from your sitting.
Understandably, GAMSAT ® physics questions can feel hard. ACER sets assumed knowledge at Year 12, but many sitters finished school years ago and never took the subject. Algebra, unit conversion and translating a graph onto a lung or a circuit add pressure in a 150-minute paper.
The same features make physics trainable. Reviewing a short topic list, even years later, plus rearrangement practice, usually improves accuracy faster than an equivalent hour of biology memorisation. Effort here is high yield because the official map is smaller and the relationships repeat.
GAMSAT ® physics difficulty is therefore more about format and rust than about needing a physics degree. With focused GAMSAT ® physics revision, the section often feels more predictable than students expect.
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| GAMSAT physics challenge GAMSAT physics challenge |
GAMSAT physics study strategy GAMSAT physics study strategy |
|---|---|
| Unfamiliar symbols and equations Unfamiliar symbols and equations |
Practise saying the relationship in words, then rearrange it on a whiteboard without a calculator Practise saying the relationship in words, then rearrange it on a whiteboard without a calculator |
| Unfamiliar graphs Unfamiliar graphs |
Use the title–axes–units–scale check before applying a remembered Year 12 formula Use the title–axes–units–scale check before applying a remembered Year 12 formula |
| Synthesising text, tables and diagrams Synthesising text, tables and diagrams |
Annotate matching quantities across the stem and figure, including SI prefixes Annotate matching quantities across the stem and figure, including SI prefixes |
| Time pressure — 75 questions in 150 minutes Time pressure — 75 questions in 150 minutes |
Practise GAMSAT Section 3 batches scaled to time, with GAMSAT Physics items in the mix Practise GAMSAT Section 3 batches scaled to time, with GAMSAT Physics items in the mix |
| Endurance across a long science paper Endurance across a long science paper |
Sit a full Section 1 and Section 3 pairing to time and notice where focus drops Sit a full Section 1 and Section 3 pairing to time and notice where focus drops |
Below is an example GAMSAT ® physics practice question on density and buoyancy. The stem mixes a biological setting with a Year 12 fluids idea — the usual Section 3 pattern.
The adult human body is made up of about 60% water. The location of this water changes over time as fluid moves between different compartments in the body. The main three fluid compartments are the intracellular fluid, interstitial fluid and within the bloodstream.
The interstitial fluid within the average human body can be modelled like a column of fluid as shown below:
Figure 1. Vertical distances from top of head.
In the bloodstream, the movement of blood exerts pressure onto the walls of the capillaries to direct blood flow throughout the tissues of the body. Whether a human floats or sinks while in water is altered depending on the percentage body fat of a person's body. The higher the percentage of body fat, the more likely a person will float. If a given person does indeed float, what does this say about the average density of the other non-water based 40% of this person's body?
This set is easy-to-medium GAMSAT ® physics. Floating means average body density is lower than water. The body is 60% water, so the remaining 40% must pull the average down — lower density than water. For more items, the GAMSAT ® Free Trial includes a day-by-day study guide across humanities, biology, chemistry and physics, plus 40 free MCQs.
Back to the relationship. When a unit stalls, write the shortest relevant equation — “pressure is force over area” — then rebuild from the stem and the figure.
Do not jump to a plug-in. Physics often involves maths. If no option matches, re-check the rearrangement, the units and whether the graph is linear or log.
Cut losses. GAMSAT ® Section 3 has more questions than most people finish comfortably. If a graph will not resolve in about two minutes, narrow the options and move on. ACER’s preparation advice for multiple-choice sections is to work steadily, not linger, mark an answer even if uncertain, and return later if time remains. Wrong answers are not penalised.
Never leave an answer blank. Guess, mark for review on the whiteboard if you use one, and keep moving. Keep calculations tidy so you can reuse a line of algebra. For weekly placement of physics blocks, see the GAMSAT ® study schedule.
GAMSAT ® Physics is included because medical reasoning depends on pressure, flow, energy, electricity, radiation and measurement. GAMSAT ® physics tests whether you can apply Year 12 principles to unfamiliar stems, graphs and equations, not whether you can recite every formula.
GAMSAT ® Physics makes up approximately 20% of GAMSAT ® Section 3. Since GAMSAT ® Section 3 has 75 multiple-choice questions, that is roughly 15 GAMSAT ® Physics-labelled questions. The exact count is approximate because ACER integrates GAMSAT ® Biology, GAMSAT ® Chemistry and GAMSAT ® Physics, and physics-style maths also appears inside other stems.
ACER states that the physics knowledge required for GAMSAT ® Section 3 generally corresponds to Year 12, A-level or Leaving Certificate equivalent. In practice, that means understanding core relationships well enough to apply them to novel data.
Common topics include motion and graphs, Newton’s laws, energy and momentum, fluids and pressure, electricity and magnetism, circuits, optics, radioactive decay, and the maths needed to rearrange relationships and estimate without a calculator.
ACER does not publish an official topic-by-topic GAMSAT ® physics syllabus. It publishes the GAMSAT ® Section 3 mix, the Year 12 assumed knowledge level, and the reasoning skills tested. Use a practical GAMSAT ® study syllabus for coverage, then practise applying those principles to unfamiliar stems.
Build enough Year 12 language to recognise the main relationships, then spend most of your preparation time on GAMSAT-style practice questions, rearrangement, review and timed practice. Passive reading has limited value unless it is followed by active application.
A short set of Year 12 relationships helps. Unusual formulae are generally printed in the stem. The exam rewards rearranging, checking units and applying a relationship to a new graph more than recalling a long list. Use the GAMSAT ® physics formula sheet for study fluency, not as an exam booklet.
It is challenging, but learnable. The usual barrier is format: formulae, graphs and mental arithmetic. Once those foundations are in place, the exam tests reasoning that can be developed with structured non-science GAMSAT ® preparation.
It is often described as hard because few candidates studied Year 12 physics recently and the format emphasises equations and graphs under time pressure. Official assumed knowledge is lower than for GAMSAT ® Biology and GAMSAT ® Chemistry. Focused practice usually improves scores quickly.
Khan Academy is an excellent free way to rebuild Year 12 physics language. It is not a complete GAMSAT ® physics preparation plan. After a topic is clear enough to explain or rearrange, switch to GAMSAT-style MCQs, graphs and timed mixed sets so you practise the exam skill, not only the lecture.
No. ACER lists calculators as prohibited aids in the Information Booklet. Physics items that use ratios, powers, logs or unit conversions need estimation and careful axis-reading. Needed values are usually printed in the stimulus.
No. ACER does not provide a physics formula sheet or exam booklet. Unusual formulae and constants are generally printed in the stem. Keep a short personal study list of Year 12 relationships you must rearrange, such as F = ma, V = IR, P = F/A and exponential decay, or use the free GAMSAT ® physics formula sheet while you study.
Official weights differ: chemistry is about 40% of Section 3 and physics is about 20%. Physics often feels harder because of rust and format. GAMSAT ® chemistry often feels harder because of visual structures and first-year depth. Many stems mix both, so improving one subject in isolation has a ceiling.
Diagnose whether the miss was content, equation rearrangement, units, graph reading, timing or overconfidence, then fix that habit and re-test it with mixed GAMSAT ® practice questions rather than rereading a textbook chapter.
Yes. Prior coursework helps with vocabulary, but GAMSAT ® Section III physics still places Year 12 principles in unfamiliar contexts and mixes biology, chemistry and maths. Science students lose marks when they recognise the topic and stop reading the figure.
Students with a strong physics background may need a few weeks to recalibrate and then several months of practice. Students with little physics exposure may need 6–10+ weeks for Year 12 foundations before a practice-heavy phase. The exact timeline depends on weekly study hours and whether you are also learning biology and chemistry.
If you want a compact planning sheet beside this guide, download the free GAMSAT ® physics checklist and notes PDF.
Download GAMSAT Physics Checklist & Notes
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Choose a small set of GAMSAT ® physics resources and use them actively. Videos and textbooks explain a principle; questions turn that explanation into exam performance.
Conceptual Physics by Paul Hewitt can help if you have never studied the subject and want words-first explanations; check whether your university library has an e-copy. The Feynman Lectures are optional enrichment if you already enjoy physics — they are deeper than GAMSAT ® Year 12 assumed knowledge and should not delay practice questions.
Core Year 12 equations to learn and apply for Section 3 physics.
Full science-section strategy including physics weighting.
Biology topics where physics-style graphs and relationships appear.
Quantitative skills that overlap with physics calculations.
Physics topic checklist within the wider syllabus.
Short science samples with worked solutions.
Full Section 3 volume under timed conditions.
How to sequence physics foundations if you are starting from scratch.
Year 12 physics coverage without treating a book as the whole exam.
Where weekly physics blocks sit beside biology and chemistry.
Full exam overview if you still need structure and eligibility basics.
For further free GAMSAT ® resources, including a complete topic list for Section 3, see Free GAMSAT ® Preparation Materials.
For some candidates, GAMSAT ® Physics may never feel natural. If you have followed the steps above and a “pure” GAMSAT ® Physics topic still looks unreadable, it can be rational to skip that unit and protect time for mixed stems you can finish. It is still essential to recognise easy GAMSAT ® Physics items and collect those marks.
Mark hard items for review on the whiteboard or scratch paper, narrow the options, and select an answer. About 20–40% of candidates sit with little preparation; structured GAMSAT ® physics preparation is already an edge.
Start early, study the Year 12 relationships, and practise. The more questions you see, the faster you recognise the pattern and the thought process the paper wants.
For further tips, sign up for our GAMSAT ® Free Trial to watch a recording of our GAMSAT ® Section 3 Workshop — a 10-minute excerpt is below.