Ep 35: How to Start GAMSAT Prep Strong in January

It’s January, and you’re surrounded by holiday vibes. But if you’re sitting the March GAMSAT, you are not on holidays. This is go-time. Welcome back to the Nurses Doing GAMSAT podcast. I’m Dr Tom, founder and CEO of ThankFlip. In this episode, I’m going to get straight to the point and walk you through how to start your GAMSAT preparation strong in January, even if you’re still in holiday mode, travelling, or feeling overwhelmed.

I’ll also show you how to improve your preparation if you’ve already started. We’ll do a bit of reality checking today. It’s motivation to get you moving because now is the time you need to be studying. I’m going to give you three steps to start strong, hit the ground running, and make sure that you’re doing the right kind of study—without waiting until February when it’s too late. I’ll also mention a few different resources; you can check the show notes. There’ll be a link to the show notes wherever you’re watching this, with resources to help you along the way.

It’s January right now, and depending on when you’re watching, it’s probably about seven weeks—or less—before the Section Two exam. There is enough time to make huge progress in your skills, study, and score, but you need to start now. Right? You can’t put it off. Even if you’re travelling—I don’t care. I said this to my bootcampers: I don’t care what you’ve got going on in your life right now, whether you’re travelling, working, or have kids. Whatever you can do, get at least two hours of GAMSAT study in today. If you can do two to three hours per day, that’s about 15 hours over the week. That’s how much we expect our students to be doing right now, and we showed them how to actually get that done earlier today.

Now, you don’t have to be doing epic eight-hour days. No, look, if you can’t put in eight hours a day, just do what you can. That’s what I was doing at this point before the GAMSAT. What else are you going to do—sit around playing video games? Come on, you want to be a doctor, so put in the work. If you want to go to the beach, do four solid hours beforehand in the morning, then go to the beach for a couple of hours, and finish with another three hours in the afternoon and evening. It’s easily doable if you start breaking it up.

So here’s how to actually get your preparation moving. You might be wondering how to start. At the moment, not sure when you’re watching this, but we’ve been running a “Start Strong” process with workshops and a seven-day Start Strong plan. If you watch this in time, you might be able to go to the links and download the different resources we have there.

The first step, whether you’ve been studying or not, is to do a Section One and Section Three diagnostic test. We need to do that to see where you’re at, what your weaknesses are, and what your strengths are so you understand how the test actually works. You can get the Section One and Section Three diagnostic tests from the show notes—they’re free.

Step two is to analyse the results of those diagnostic tests. Look at what you got wrong and why. Was it a topic you didn’t know or did you rush it? Now you need to really hone in on the specific topics and, more importantly, the skills that you’re lacking that caused you to get questions wrong. Write that down and start looking for patterns: what keeps coming up, what’s a big problem for you.

If you’re part of our Start Strong workshop series, you’ll have my seven-day Start Strong plan, which gives you a spreadsheet and tracking tool to help you figure this out, along with a debrief on how to analyse these tests. If you act quickly, you might be able to get that in the show notes.

The key is to really pull it apart and go into the specifics so you know exactly what you need to address. The problem is that some people spend all their time researching, which is not studying, and then reviewing science topics randomly. That doesn’t help. You need to follow the right steps.

So the three steps: first, do the diagnostic test. Second, analyse it in detail. Third, start fixing the biggest problem areas first—the ones costing you the most marks. That way, you’ll get the biggest bang for your effort and make a lot of progress quickly.

Whether you’ve been studying a little or are just starting, this is a bit of a reality check. Some people say, “I can’t do a diagnostic test to begin with.” Yes, you can. When you go to see a doctor, they do diagnostics before prescribing a treatment plan. Same thing here—you need to diagnose the problem areas before you can put together a treatment plan for yourself.

I really want to emphasise how important this time of year is, at the start of January, when everybody else is fluffing around. The people who do well in March are not necessarily the smartest, but the most consistent—the ones who do the work even when they don’t feel like it. There’s a big misconception that you can only study when motivated. Most of the time, you’re not going to feel motivated. Most of the time, people aren’t feeling motivated.

Do you reckon a doctor who’s worn out, with a family at home and a full clinic, is always motivated? No. They feel crap at times but still get it done. Same thing with your GAMSAT study. Don’t wait until the sun comes out, the clouds clear, it’s sunny, and you feel perfect and motivated. Conditions are never perfect—you might feel that way 10% of the time. You need to be deliberate, purposeful, and get it done. Keep moving. January is the time to do it, not when things are easier or when you get back from your trip.

So when you stop listening to this, start studying. Get that diagnostic done, review it, start addressing the problem areas, and get moving. By February, if you leave it till then, it’s probably too late. Or maybe not—it depends on what you do. There’ll be some serious heavy lifting at that point. But if you want the best chance, start now. Get moving. You’ve got the resources in the show notes, and if you want help, reach out to us—we’re here to help.

This is a quick one; I don’t have much more to add. You’ve got this. If you’re listening before March, chat with our team. We can see what’s possible depending on your situation—you might still get a great result. I’ve seen it happen. Strange things happen. But if you’re listening early, don’t put it off. Get it done now and I’ll see you on the other side.