I hear that the UCAT is hard. So should I pursue the graduate medical entry pathway?

For a simple comparison between UCAT and GAMSAT, please read this blog: UCAT vs GAMSAT

• The length of study time is longer for graduate entry

The graduate medicine entry route requires that you complete a degree first before applying for Medicine. This means studying hard for an additional 3 or 4 years (and paying the fees), to maintain high grades with no guarantee of getting into Medicine. Candidates will have exams for at least 7 years: three years of the first degree and 4 years of the condensed medical degree. In comparison, undergrad medicine, for e.g., at Monash, is far less stressful because in the first year they ease you in, and in the final year you are working as an unpaid intern (so no exams).

The median age of students entering graduate medical programs in Australia is 25.4 years. In contrast, you would have completed your medical degree and probably be working as a Registrar in your chosen specialty if you choose the Year 12 entry (UCAT) route. Imagine entering medical school at 25 via graduate entry, then trying to study for the specialist training exams in your early thirties with a family to care for!

• The GAMSAT is a longer test than UCAT

You also need to sit a test called the GAMSAT, which is a six hour test (compare this with UCAT which is a two hour test) as well as doing well in the interview. The preparation courses for GAMSAT are far more expensive, in the range of $1500 plus.

The GAMSAT has been described by most people as ‘the most horrible thing I've ever had to do in my life’. Do not make the mistake of thinking that if you do a Biomedicine or Biosciences degree, you will automatically be offered a place in Medicine, as some universities misleadingly make you believe. If you miss out on a place in Medicine, you may end up with a degree that is not useful for your future, and a waste of several years of your life.

Medical students who have sat both tests, claim GAMSAT involves more preparation. GAMSAT is getting harder for several reasons (e.g., many professionals wanting to change careers, many school leavers putting off the hard work and difficult decision).

Another important reason that has been well documented is that there is a general decline in psychometric test performance as a person advances in age. For e.g.,, see "Socio-economic predictors of performance in the UCAT": Puddey and Mercer, BMC Medical education, 2013, 13:155. This shows that the performance of candidates sitting UCAT between 16 years and 45 years consistently drops with age. So you are far better off sitting the test as early as possible (in year 12).

• The Graduate entry pathway has less options and is more expensive

Some students want to go to so-called "prestigious" universities (e.g., Sydney University) which offer only graduate medicine. However, unlike other disciplines such as law, in medicine it does not matter which university you graduate from. Further, when you apply through the graduate entry pathway, you can only apply to one university (with up to 6 preferences) and you will be interviewed only by one university. The universities have colluded to make it this way, so that it is less work for them and easier for them to select students (although it imposes harsh restrictions on aspiring doctors).

Some people think universities are education-oriented organisations, but in reality they are businesses with an annual income of each university around two billion dollars - they earn about $30,000 per year of study at university, for each student they enrol (about $10,000 from you, and the rest from the government, which eventually comes from your taxes). This means that the longer you study at university, the better it is for them. This is the reason why some universities are moving towards graduate-entry medical programs. It is to increase universities' income, not because it is good for you! Furthermore, universities are prohibited from charging full fee for undergraduate medicine, but they can charge full fee for graduate medicine!

With the higher debts of graduate-entry and the uncertainty of whether you will get into medicine, universities will be laughing all the way to the bank, but you will end up in the classic cycle of borrowing to pay for a degree, to get a job, to pay off what you borrowed (if you don't get into medicine).

Updated on: 03/10/2025