How do we optimise our score in Section II? The answer, more often than not, is an individual one: there isn’t merely one so-called ‘optimal’ approach to studying for this section of the GAMSAT, but rather a whole host of different strategies that we might want to employ in our preparation.

To start, we need to understand the sort of essay or writing style we might employ on the day of our exam. All too often, there seems to exist the idea that there is, again, one ‘best’ approach to Section II; this is false. Your writing style, and your ability to communicate yourself in a manner that is both concise and logical, will invariably differ from the next test taker. And so, really, in the first stages of your GAMSAT preparation, you need to be pondering the writing approach for which you will feel most comfortable – that is, quitesimply, the writing approach that will enable you to efficiently communicate two separate pieces of writing in just over an hour. No easy task, of course, and in truth a reason as to why we must begin our GAMSAT preparation well before the examination itself.

What tends to help in this regard is, at the very least, an idea of the sort of structure you are going to employ in your Section II writings. The idea that one can just spontaneously generate a fluid and cogent piece of writing on the day of the exam is, more often than not, misleading; indeed, every bit of practice using the same style of writing will not only help you to familiarise yourself with the pace and intensity of the exam, but will also enhance your

ability to think on your feet. Simply, with a known structure and approach to tackling Section II, you leave yourself with more cognitive space in which to produce a sophisticated and effective response to the stimuli.

In this regard, there is little doubt that having a pre-formed understanding of your world view and opinions will be tremendously helpful on the day of your exam. Knowing, for instance, the sort of response you might give to certain issues of political, familial, or personal importance will, of course, only further enhance your writing efficiency on the day. Have no shame in constructing a sort of ‘ideas bank’ that you can draw from throughout the course of

your writings. Really, having a well-formed understanding of how you might come to frame challenging scenarios, events, and ideas is only going to improve the way in which you might respond to the demands of Section II. Relying on spontaneous opinion and thought alone is, in most cases, inferior to well-prepared vision and cognition within GAMSAT preparation.

Of course, we can’t forget the importance of routine and intense practice writing within our preparation for Section II. Simulating the exact sort of conditions that will occur on the day, and indeed limiting yourself in terms of time, will only enhance your ability to respond to the stresses of this exam. In truth, however, we must also venture to examine our own work; critical reflection and an honest evaluation of our own writing will do much to help us in identifying common patterns of erroneous thought and language. Armed with this knowledge of our own pitfalls and cognitive mistakes, we can, over time, make incremental improvements on our performance in Section II.

 And that, really, is the key: little steps. Start early in your GAMSAT preparation, and meaningfully structure your study, and there is little doubt you will succeed!