Section II general essay hints

The technicalities - 1 hour writing time, 5 minutes reading time. In this time you are to complete two essays. Each essay should be allowed 25 minutes solid writing time and around 5 minutes planning time. The number of words can vary widely - I'm guessing I generally write 500-600 words. The booklet provided is quite small with about 3 lined pages for writing and 2 blank pages for planning.

As you have limited time, you should keep your essays short and sweet. Structure is one of the points you are marked on so try to have a reasonable essay structure, with an introduction of your thesis, three paragraphs of supporting evidence, and a conclusion. There are many useful resources on essay structure which may be useful if you are not used to writing essays. Also, ensure that your essay is logical and avoid absolutes as these are much harder to logically defend (eg most doctors, not all doctors).

There used to be two types of essays used in the GAMSAT which had different emphases. One essay was used as a personal/ reflective type essay which the other was a more logical/rational argumentative essay. This has now been removed from the ACER guide and they may not be following this structure anymore.

The essay is designed to test a few things that the GAMSAT cannot. While the GANSAT tests application of logical reasoning, it does not test being able to create logical arguments. It also does not test for clear, concise writing and adequate spelling and grammar abilities. and finally, the essay is a chance for doctors to show the soft skills they may not be able to demonstrate in the GAMSAT itself.

With a interviews apparently going out of fashion, this demonstration of these soft skills may be even more important. Keep the ultimate goal of the test - your future career as a doctor - in mind as you write an essay, as many essay topics can be related back to this (the last year's topics were youth and intelligence, something most student doctors have, and so I wrote an essay on hubris).

Another suggestion for coming up with a position based on the quote material is to find a quote that induces a strong argumentative response. Often, the quotes will use opposite sides of an argument. You can also pick a topic based on the quotes' common theme. Don't feel that you need to use all the quotes or, indeed, any of the quotes - I find they are helpful to refer to once or twice but the quotes, as justification, will have been overused. It is better to provide your own individual supporting material to personalise your essay.

You can find this supporting material in a wide variety of sources. I agree that you'll need to read widely as preparation for the GAMSAT, so you can sometimes remember quotes from material you were reading, newspaper stories. Other sources I've used include song lyrics, vaguely remembered scientific articles, and personal experiences (including those of my friends). Use a variety of this supporting material - some, like the scientific evidence, is logical and indisputable, and you need not feel that you need to quote the another or source (Studies have shown ...). Some, like the personal experiences and quotes from your reading, helps develop the reader's impression of you as a person. And your interpretation of other's feelings can help show empathy. I usually use the reading time to come up with a rough thesis for each essay and recall around five different examples which support my thesis, with a good mix of sources. This is more than sufficient for such a short essay and even then I find myself shortening experiences and quote interpretations. If you find the essays seem to have that interpretive/introspective split, it may be best to weight your examples similarly.

In terms of writing the essay, it's very hard for those of us used to writing on computers to transition to writing solely on the page - we can't go back and edit seamlessly. If you feel you are writing a piece you need to edit, you can write on every second line to leave more space. If you find yourself unable to think of an introductory topic, you can leave a large space at the start of the essay and come back to it. And don't be afraid to use clearly marked footnotes and/or asterisks to mark new sections you would have inserted. When taking the IB, it was emphasised that anything you write, the examiners have to read. Make it easy for them, but don't feel you need to write the essay all in one chunk. On the other hand, you only have a limited amount of time and do not want to be handing in an essay missing a first paragraph. In your practice essays, try to keep this stream of consciousness type material flowing. You may find this section a lot easier if you've had, as in the ACT system, in-class essays and the AST to practice.

Try to keep your handwriting legible.

You can also get your essays critiqued, whether on one of the student doctor forums online or by paid tutors. Several tutoring companies offer essay-marking packages. You can get feedback from teachers, colleagues and friends as well.