Thinking of taking the UMAT for medical school.

[Defective]

i'm only thinking about it as i have many things to consider but putting those asside, after the research i've done on the different Medical schools, the 3 i've come to choose between are La Trobe, Flinders and North Terrace (adelaide) teaching is very similar across all but i know my way around adelaide more than i do melbourne.

i have a better chance of getting in as a Mature age student than any other way and the fact i'm starting St.John volunteering at events means that will show i have an interest and its not just on a whim.

now i should clarify for those that don't know i would need to sit both the STAT and UMAT which are
STAT: Special Tertiary Admissions Test
UMAT: Undergraduate Medicine and health sciences Admission Test

i'd like to one day at some point be an ED physician focussing on first contact care after paramedics. I have been treated so well myself but i have also seen the other side the side of doctors that don't give a tohootie...i've grown up with parents in the medical profession and in hospitals by going to work on the weekends with them because i was bored. i've pressed the buttons to do CT's and Xrays, sat on radiologists laps and been taught to read xrays when everyone else was learning to read. i did the online sample test for the American version of UMAT (MCAT) and got 95%.

but i've had my own share of medical issues and i'm called the wonder patient because i don't ring the bell (at all) i'm quiet and i can go to the toilet myself (believe me, if you know a nurse or are related to one you would understand how much this means to them)

so Medicine i guess is in my blood, gore and blood get adrenaline pumping through my body and i love dissections!!!

if there are any Med students on here, who did you go through for UMAT prep??

 

[littlemay]

The 'bored of studies' forums have a lot of really good info on this, if you can deal with the excessive trolling...

 

[Defective]

whats that??

 

[emma_jane]

Hey, I'm currently in 3rd year med at Adelaide Uni.

I did MedEntry to help get me through the UMAT - there are a lot of mixed reports as to whether or not people actually believe that the UMAT training assists at all, however I found it to be of tremendous value, and I think I would have failed the UMAT had I not done it. I think that the as the UMAT comprises of a very specific set of logic questions, and they can be quite confusing with the way that they are asked (trying to trick you). I believe that if you don't have the sort of logical thinking required to answer the questions already, a UMAT course will be of no benefit. However, in my case, I am a very logical person and I think that the course taught me how to properly use my logic to answer the questions, rather than teaching me logical thought in the first place (does that make sense?). Basically, before the MedEntry course I was doing pretty crap (75th percentile on the practice tests). However after doing the course, I got in the 99th percentile for the actual UMAT.

I love med. I have never wanted to study anything else so I was very lucky to get in first time round. The first few years of the course are heaps boring when it's a lot of textbooks and learning of principles and anatomy etc, however this year I started a day in the hospital per week seeing patients, and start full time hospital placements next year which I am super excited about because now it means I can finally apply my learning to something!

If you have any questions about the Adelaide course or about UMAT or anything, feel free to shoot me a PM or whatever and I can do my best to help.

Emma

 

[littlemay]

whats that??

I would link you to the site but i didn't think i was allowed. Google 'bored of studies', it's a website about high school and tertiary study in Australia, there's a lot of people on those forums that would be taking/have taken the UMAT.

 

[Defective]

Hey, I'm currently in 3rd year med at Adelaide Uni.

I did MedEntry to help get me through the UMAT - there are a lot of mixed reports as to whether or not people actually believe that the UMAT training assists at all, however I found it to be of tremendous value, and I think I would have failed the UMAT had I not done it. I think that the as the UMAT comprises of a very specific set of logic questions, and they can be quite confusing with the way that they are asked (trying to trick you). I believe that if you don't have the sort of logical thinking required to answer the questions already, a UMAT course will be of no benefit. However, in my case, I am a very logical person and I think that the course taught me how to properly use my logic to answer the questions, rather than teaching me logical thought in the first place (does that make sense?). Basically, before the MedEntry course I was doing pretty crap (75th percentile on the practice tests). However after doing the course, I got in the 99th percentile for the actual UMAT.

I love med. I have never wanted to study anything else so I was very lucky to get in first time round. The first few years of the course are heaps boring when it's a lot of textbooks and learning of principles and anatomy etc, however this year I started a day in the hospital per week seeing patients, and start full time hospital placements next year which I am super excited about because now it means I can finally apply my learning to something!

If you have any questions about the Adelaide course or about UMAT or anything, feel free to shoot me a PM or whatever and I can do my best to help.

Emma

LOL thats good to hear Em, i'm a practical thinker (did the timed sample questions for logic thinking and got 22/44) but am a fast learner so. OHHHH and how do you find anatomy boring...i could be a study buddy and make it fun for you....lol...i love pathology,anatomy, microbiology if its medical i'm there baby!

you should hear how i talk to the doctors...example of a convo with the physician that saw me last saturday at AMU in RAH

DR: so you been sick with a cold/flu/throat infection lately
Me: No, nothing why is my WBC up??
Dr: Yes
Me: oh ok, out of curiousity...which ones?
Dr: Both your T and B cells
Me: Hmmm
Dr: i'll run it again and chuck in another ESR,Platelet Function studies, and do your Hemaglobin
Me: Sweet

the med students said to me after '...and you understood all that?'

It's a beautiful field, PM me if you need a person to vent to or wanna have coffee if you'r ever at Revive on 5 at RAH!

 

[varanophile]

Hi Defective, I went through med school at UWA and sat the UMAT without any of the prep courses. Had I known they were there I would have taken them. I had several friends who didn't get in first time who then went through the preparation and they all had increases in their marks, some by up to 20%, getting them through to the interview. This is especially true for the first and third sections of the exam, i.e. logic and reasoning and spatial IQ. Like any IQ test if you practice similar questions your overall score will improve. I've even heard some referring to it as cheating, but I say if the opportunity is there then you should take it.

I’m currently working as a registrar in Emergency medicine and can say it is a great job. No two days are ever the same. You need to be able to work well in a team, and be aware that you will have to work all hours. You also have to accept that every day you will be dealing with abusive (both physically and verbally), drunk or otherwise intoxicated and unpleasant people, who will usually take the most work with the least thanks. Luckily this is made up for by the vast majority of people who are pleasure to meet and treat.

 

[Defective]

Hi Defective, I went through med school at UWA and sat the UMAT without any of the prep courses. Had I known they were there I would have taken them. I had several friends who didn't get in first time who then went through the preparation and they all had increases in their marks, some by up to 20%, getting them through to the interview. This is especially true for the first and third sections of the exam, i.e. logic and reasoning and spatial IQ. Like any IQ test if you practice similar questions your overall score will improve. I've even heard some referring to it as cheating, but I say if the opportunity is there then you should take it.

I’m currently working as a registrar in Emergency medicine and can say it is a great job. No two days are ever the same. You need to be able to work well in a team, and be aware that you will have to work all hours. You also have to accept that every day you will be dealing with abusive (both physically and verbally), drunk or otherwise intoxicated and unpleasant people, who will usually take the most work with the least thanks. Luckily this is made up for by the vast majority of people who are pleasure to meet and treat.

Yeah, I've spent my fair share of time in the ED as a patient over the past 3mths to have experienced freaky friday,manic monday and sedated saturday!!! I was told when i was in the neuro unit i should be a nurse (long story cut short a elderly patient was freaking out about re-siting of a canular and was moving alot yelling and screaming plus she was a stroke patient...i was nice, told her the dr was good at what he did and showed her mine and played debussy as i'd picked up she like classical music) she was distracted, calm and the dr got the canular in...after 4 trys

i have things i need to do like get in shape and strengthen my core muscles and stuff but i know if i want something i will get it and i want this.

 

[Nathan_T]

Yeah. When I was thinking about medicine, people told me that there's no way you can train for the UMAT. I failed fairly miserably at the time, mainly the logic questions.

Then once I went to uni, I actually learnt formal logic and now could do that section in my sleep. Honestly, I'm hugely thankful I didn't end up doing medicine, but I'd suggest if you've got the cash to burn, a course would be a good idea even if it's just for the logic questions.

 

[Defective]

nah i don't have the money but i can get funding (disability employment network ) and i can save...i did struggle with the logic questions online but the 2nd section was pretty easy and i got 38/38