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Physics is often considered by students to be the most difficult topic on the GAMSAT ® exam, since most medical school applicants do not have a Physics background. It is also sometimes overlooked because it ‘only makes up 20% of Section 3’. However, Physics is often not as tough as commonly thought, and can be effectively studied by systematically and strategically going through the syllabus and relevant topics. Also, getting the relatively higher value Physics questions right can be the difference that gets you into medical school. In studying Physics, one of our key tips is to know the relevant formulae and the conceptual background that underpins them. Here at GradReady, we’re providing a free GAMSAT ® Physics Cheat Sheet to kickstart your GAMSAT ® Physics Study.
Our GAMSAT ® Physics Cheat Sheet provides you the main formulae needed to ace the Physics section of the GAMSAT ® . You can use it all the way through in your preparation, or use it as a model to create your own formula list from.
Our formula sheet can be downloaded for free using the below button. Print it out and learn the formulae within, as well as the concepts behind them. You can then incorporate these into your GAMSAT ® Physics notes to be well prepared for the GAMSAT ® .
We also provide a more detailed GAMSAT ® Physics guide, broken down into a day-by-day plan as part of our comprehensive GAMSAT ® Study Guide, which can be accessed as part of our GAMSAT ® Free Trial. Get access to a complete GAMSAT ® Syllabus, 50 free MCQs as well as a wealth of other preparation materials to help you kickstart your preparation:
You are NOT given a discrete, separate formula sheet in the GAMSAT ® Exam . However, if required for a particular question in S3, one or more formulas will appear alongside the question stem. We will talk more about this in the section below.
Within the GAMSAT ® , you will encounter diverse questions entailing mathematical or scientific concepts. In many of these instances, the essential formulas or equations will be furnished as an integral part of the question itself. These formulas could pertain to physics, chemistry, or biology, and they are indispensable for solving the specific problem posed. For instance, if your task involves calculating the velocity of an object, you can generally expect the velocity formula to be included in the question.
While GAMSAT ® indeed provides pertinent equations within questions, it's unwise to rely solely on the availability of all fundamental formulas. There may be an assumption that you possess and can adeptly employ basic formulas, such as the formula for the area of a triangle or Newton's second law (F=ma), even when these are not explicitly presented in the question.
The GAMSAT ® serves the purpose of evaluating your capacity to think critically, engage in effective problem-solving, and apply knowledge across a diverse range of disciplines. Hence, while they do offer necessary equations when warranted, they also aim to gauge your foundational knowledge and your ability to apply it autonomously, without the need for explicit formulaic guidance. This balanced approach ensures that the GAMSAT ® accurately assesses your readiness for medical and health science programs.
As always, time is of the essence in answering questions. As mentioned earlier in this article, many test-takers are not strong in physics due to their varied academic backgrounds. So it is super important to become familiar with physics content. This also means becoming familiar with physics formulas. If you are seeing formulas for the first time in an exam, it can be time-consuming to make sense of them and know where to plug in numbers.
We would not recommend memorising formulas. The most helpful thing to do is to practise applying them in practice questions! Sign up for our Free Trial to get access to a GAMSAT ® Syllabus, 50 free MCQs as well as a wealth of other preparation materials to help you kickstart your preparation.
To make the most out of your GAMSAT ® Physics study, we believe you should hone in on the key topics covered in the GAMSAT ® exam. This helps you maximise efficiency and the time you can spend on really understanding the key concepts. That’s why we have provided a checklist of the main topics in the GAMSAT ® Physics Syllabus to help you organise your study and plan your physics notes.
This is not an exhaustive list but should cover quite a lot in the GAMSAT ® exam. You can also download our more comprehensive GAMSAT ® Study Syllabus which covers Section 1, 2, as well as Chemistry and Biology in Section 3 on top of Physics. An additional piece of advice: It is suggested that you acquire some “cultural” knowledge of physics: Learn what are the important historical experiments and how physics’ principles are used in biology or chemistry research (e.g. one GAMSAT ® physics question is based on the design of a mass spectrometer).
Formulas are not everything! Remember that the GAMSAT ® Exam is all about reasoning, not knowledge recall. GAMSAT ® questions assess your ability to digest, interpret and detect patterns in information provided to you and for you to make logical inferences.
Whilst memorising GAMSAT ® Physics equations will generally help, this is not always necessary as the GAMSAT ® Physics MCQs will normally provide you with any necessary information. That said, learning how to apply such formulas, and getting practice using and manipulating them is an important part of your preparation. Too many students have a tendency to believe that GAMSAT ® Physics is all about remembering formulas! This is certainly not the case - It’s much more useful to be comfortable using new formulas and manipulating some general ones than to memorise them, and ACER specifically designs GAMSAT ® questions to avoid simple ‘plug-in and solve’ questions.
What is important is that you are able to generate relationships between different formulas and have the confidence in your algebraic manipulation skills to highlight new relationships and make logical conclusions.
For further information on how to prepare for GAMSAT Section 3 Physics, check out our comprehensive guide: GAMSAT Physics: How to Prepare.
If you come from a non-science background, you may find GAMSAT ® Physics especially challenging. Visit our comprehensive guide on how to prepare for the GAMSAT ® with a non-science background for some helpful tips and tricks.
The most comprehensive library of free GAMSAT Preparation materials available.
Covers everything you need to know about your GAMSAT ® Results - How the scoring works, result release dates and even GAMSAT ® score cutoffs.
A breakdown of how to approach study effectively and how to set up a GAMSAT ® study schedule
An overview of what to expect in Section 1 of the GAMSAT ® Exam, how to prepare for the Reasoning and Humanities questions.
An overview of what to expect in Section 2 of the GAMSAT ® Exam, how to prepare and how to perfect your essay technique.
An overview of what to expect in Section 3 of the GAMSAT ® Exam and how to prepare for each of the topics - Biology, Chemistry, & Physics.
For further tips and advice make sure you sign up for our GAMSAT ® Free Trial to watch a recording of our GAMSAT ® Section 3 Workshop - Check out the 10 minute excerpt below
