Gradmed London Student Comments

Comments from Our Patron, Emeritus Professor Richard Knight, and some of our wonderful Alumni below … Medicine is a demanding but rewarding career, with many and varied opportunities for the medical graduate. The ‘late’ entrant to medical school may possess a number of useful attributes: additional emotional maturity, a more experienced approach to study and a wider experience of life. I myself was a ‘late’ entrant to medical school and I appreciate these potential advantages but also realise the challenges. The first challenge, of course, is obtaining a place at medical school; this has become increasingly competitive and also more complex with structured ‘stations’ at interviews and aptitude exams. Help preparing for these, along with learning or revising basic science background knowledge may make all the difference and GradMed has long and successful experience in this area. It has been my honour to be Patron of GradMed since 2004 and I believe that ‘mature’ entrants into medicine have a great deal to offer. Emeritus Professor Richard Knight Emeritus Professor of Clinical Neurology, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh. Honorary Consultant Clinical Neurologist, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh

GRADMED SINCE 2002

Having vainly tried to ‘learn undergraduate chemistry’ by myself, I took the decision to go on the GRADMED full prep course. It was undoubtedly expensive but I can honestly say it is the best thing I’ve ever bought. Their experience of this exam is absolutely priceless – they know the absolute intricacies of the test and can really teach you how to think in a logical, concise and GAMSAT way. It is unlike any exam I’ve ever taken in that it does not only presume a high level of scientific knowledge, it seeks to test this knowledge in conceptually opaque ways. A classic GAMSAT approach is to seemingly ask a question about one topic when in fact it’s about something completely different. Throughout the whole course GRADMED teach you what you absolutely need to know, and how to spot GAMSAT tricks. I believe this really sets you apart from the average applicant. Even those who are gifted scientists. Don’t get me wrong, you cannot just go on this course and pass the exam. You need to work like an absolute madman to get to the required knowledge. But at least you’re working with the right tools in order to get there. Without GRADMED, I know I would have spent so much time learning the wrong formula, the wrong reactions and at all times applying it in the wrong way. Not a minute was wasted with GRADMED. Yehuda Strang, score 69

I wanted to say thank you so much! I just got my results and I scored 85 overall! Megan Stanley, score 85 Just a quick note to say I can’t possibly thank you enough for not only the fantastically insightful and well-structured course but for all of your support and reassurance too. Somehow, I managed to get 74 overall!!!! There is no way I could have done this without you and I would wholeheartedly recommend the course to anyone considering the GEM. It wasn’t cheap, but I was worth every penny. Alice Ibbotson, score 74

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Just wanted to let you know my GAMSAT results - with an overall of 64 I am so pleased. This was my first GAMSAT that I have taken and was so lost on how to prepare until I was told about Gradmed and could not be happier that I decided to go for it. I just wanted to say a massive thank you for all your help over the summer and the support throughout! Alex Orton, score 64 I just wanted to let you know that I got a 72 in my GAMSAT, which included a 78 in section 3. Thank you so much for all of your help, it clearly worked!!! I will highly recommend Gradmed’s services. Katie Birt, score 72 I just wanted to write and let you know how the GAMSAT results went. I have received an overall score of 68, with 69 in section 1, 77 in section 2 and 63 in section 3. I just wanted to thank you for the amazing support GRADMED provided me with, and if you require any help from me in the future, with new students, etc, I would be delighted. Meghana Ghosh, score 68 Just wanted to say thank you again for all your help over the last 6 months. Having come from a non- science background I found the GAMSAT daunting on the first day of the course, but it was definitely worth it. I ended up scoring 70 overall so I’m over the moon…. I’d recommend you guys to anybody. Thanks again. Mark O’Connell, Score 70 Morning Paul, I’m just sending this after opening my GAMSAT results! I am over the moon with a score of 66 overall! I couldn’t have done it without you and the guys at Gradmed! I had sat the exam twice before and just couldn’t get over 56 so to come out with a score of 66 is really a testimony to you guys! Eimear Higgins, Score 66 Hi Paul, Got my result this morning, 69 - exactly the same as the mock!! I’m absolutely delighted, and just wanted to thank you and the team so much for all of your help!! Rob Barrett, Score 69

This is a very quick email to say thank you very much for all your help and. I obtained a score of 64 in the GAMSAT. I don’t think I could have done this without all your help and materials, the classes were invaluable as were all the practice questions and mock exam. Dan and Paul were both phenomenal and passionate teachers and no question was too small or stupid. Thanks again. Eimear Bourke, Score 64 I just wanted to let you know I got a score of 64 and I never could have achieved this without your incredible course! The classes were fantastic, and the study materials were invaluable! Many thanks Adam Lynch, Score 64 Hi Paul, writing to let you know that I am delighted with my result, and its with massive thanks to all of you guys. Got 65 and went up by 13 marks from when I did it before the course. Matthew Larney, Score 65 I felt I should drop you an email to give a big thank you to all of the team and yourself for the Gradmed course. I achieved a respectable 68 and can honestly say your classes were the only prep I did! (59, 64, 74). Colm Savage, Score 68 Just a quick email to express my thanks for your teaching on the Gradmed course and to give you some feedback on the result I achieved. The course was recommended to me by a friend and it definitely helped me get the result. David Carter, Score 64 Hi Dan and Paul, my results are in. I was absolutely shocked, but I’ve got 63 overall, section 1 55, section 2 71, and section 3 64. Section 3 up from 47/49. I thought I had completely flunked it so very shocked and spent the morning dancing around my house like a loon because I have worked so hard for this. Hahaha. THANK YOU for your amazing help. You’re brilliant teachers and I wish you could teach us at med school!! I’ll definitely keep in touch with you both. I actually really miss the course, it was so much fun and I loved learning. Erin Salisbury, score 63

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Just over a year ago I had literally never even considered medicine nor did I have any idea it was a possibility as a graduate with no science degree nor science A-levels …. and somehow now in just over a month I will be starting at St George’s. I was working full time whilst doing the full Gradmed course at weekends and revising in mornings and evenings, but it really was so enjoyable. Every class really was as enjoyable as it was educational with all the lecturers passion for their subject and the genuine feeling that their purpose was your purpose, and the clear addition of strategic insights for passing the exam. Moreover, the lecturers style made the whole thing really work. Paul’s jokes, hilarious or hilariously bad, but always hilarious; Dan also was hilarious and constantly using stories relating Biology to life and his expression of the endless fascination it held for him and should hold for everybody; and Los’s one-man dramatic soliloquies, verbal philosophical explorations and direct challenges to the class’s engagement and interpretations. All this and the lecturers’ own love of their subjects inspired your own interest beyond the exam, which takes the edge of the constant fear of the 7-hour exam looming. So just a massive thank you to them and to the others too, though I had fewer lessons with them, all the teachers I had were great. Yemi Apampa, score 66 I just wanted to let you know that with your help I managed to get an overall score of 70 on this year’s GAMSAT. Thank you for all your help this year. I will definitely be recommending your course to friends. Anthony O’Riordan, score 70 I just wanted to let you know that I’m absolutely delighted with my GAMSAT results. I achieved an overall score of 68 …. I know I would not have been able to achieve the results without Gradmed’s help and I just wanted to say a massive thank you to you all. The course gave me everything I needed to improve from my last sitting considerably (last time overall score 56). Thank you all so much, I am so grateful for all your teaching and help. Lorna Williams, score 68 Do pass on my thanks to the entire team with a special thank you to Paul and Dan. This course (Summer 2020) has, most importantly, made me believe in myself at a stage where I was feeling a lot of doubt. Akshara Mathi, Score 64

I just wanted to let you know I got a score of 64 and I never could have achieved this without your incredible course! The classes were fantastic and the study materials were invaluable! Many thanks, Adam Lynch, score 64 Hi Paul, writing to let you know that I am delighted with my result, and its with massive thanks to all of you guys. Got 65 and went up by 13 marks from when I did it before the course. Mathew Larney, score 65 The resources provided by GradMed were a great help during the year or so I spent on this GAMSAT journey, as were the brilliant people working to deliver the course. I learnt a lot about myself throughout the process of trying to improve my scores; picking up a valuable range of skills and insights which can be definitely carried forward into the future, not just academically but also in life! And once again, thank you! Pedro Pei, score 63 I wanted to say thanks very much for all of your help this summer (thought I’d wait until after the results came out). The science section pulled me right up to a 69 overall (I: 63, II: 65, III: 73), which I’m very pleased with. Max Little, score 69 Absolutely delighted! Got 69 ……… In order of sections 57, 73, 72. Fingers crossed for the unis now! Really glad I did your course. Alanna James, score 69 Just wanted to let you know I got my score today and I got 67 (65, 65 & 68). It was the 92nd percentile so I am obviously very pleased. Please thank all the tutors for me. They were definitely one of the best tutors I have had in my life – and I have studied a long time and in different countries. Vic gets a special mention, though I love Physics anyway. Chemistry was tough but I think the way we did it in class was the best way to go about it. Bio was good too and the essay writing practices were useful. All the best for the future with GRADMED – thank goodness you guys exist! Yuki Kubota, score 67

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Woah! What did you do to my brain?! I got a 62! Money well spent, you guy are fabulous and also, I had loads of fun. Andrea Aresti, score 62 Just to let you know that I got 68 in the GAMSAT and I’m delighted. I couldn’t have done it without your help! David Shlosberg, score 68 No doubt you will get many happy emails today. This is to let you know that amazingly I managed to get a score of 64 on GAMSAT. Thank you so much for your help and advice as well as the brilliant classes and practice questions. I could not have done it without you! Hopefully this is another example for prospective students that it can be done with a humanities background, full time job and as a single mum. Many thanks again. Ursula Gregory, score 64 I am happy to say I achieved 64 in the GAMSAT exam first time with the help of Gradmed, just thought I would let you know! Rebecca Keane, score 64 Just a quick email to let you know that I am really pleased with my GAMSAT result. I had very little time to study because of work and travel, so the course made all the difference. I got 80 in section II alone!!! Philip Kavanagh, score 70 Just to let you know my scores 68 – 87 – 60 with a raw score of 68. The intensive course was one of the finest revision courses I have ever done. I came from a point of Year 5 level science ie. there were children in my wife’s primary school that had a deeper understanding of the sciences than me; which highlights how much support you have afforded. All the tutors were first class. The notes you give out are excellent and I will look to keep them as I know they will be my first port of call if I manage to crack the next stage of the selection process. I think my score in paper 2 says all it needs to say about Los’s essay writing technique. I am sure you are getting hundreds of emails similar to this one, which must make you deservedly very proud for creating such a high-quality offering. If you do have anyone that is a total non- science student with less than 13 weeks to go; drop them my email and I would be happy to share my experiences. Jez Hunter, score 68

Just wanted to let you know that I got 67 in the GAMSAT and there is no way I would have done it without GradMed. So thank you! Nottingham here I come! Cheryl Walker, score 67 I scored 63 overall so I am very happy!! Thank you for all your help over the summer, I could not have done it without you! Rosh Patel, score 63 The Chemistry course was excellent, very comprehensive. It took me from GCSE level to a good GAMSAT score in 6 sessions. The interview practice was well worth the money, the feedback was detailed from an experienced university interviewer and gave me a constructive way to focus my preparation. Paul Whitelegg, score 68 I just wanted to thank you for all the help and support you offered this year. A big thank you to Los - who with his inspiration made me score highly in the one section I was dreading the most. Without GradMed I don’t think I would have secured a place on the graduate course this year. Manveer Basati, score 71 …. Anyway I can’t even begin to express how thankful I am, thanks for the course and everything! Marek Zyskowski, score 63 After taking the full Gradmed course this year I’m thrilled to have made the cut off for St George’s after my first (and hopefully last) attempt at the exam. This was a far higher result than I could have hoped for having not studied any science before the course since my GCSEs in 2004. Taking the Gradmed course really kicked me into action and helped in a big way to get me up to Gamsat standard from scratch in just 3 months. The best things about the course were your inspirational teachers, particularly Dan who taught me biology. Though I struggled at times, the difficulty of the course was pitched at just the right level for the exam, so I knew exactly what standard to work towards. Thank you all so much for your input!

Keep up the good work. Many Thanks,

Will Wilson, score 62

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I took the GradMed courses in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Maths for Science and am very pleased to say that my overall score was 62 and my score for the science section was 61 – which, with nothing but a GCSE in science to my name, was something I did not think possible at the beginning of the summer! Thank you to all at GradMed, especially the fantastic science teachers for their endless enthusiasm. Lucy Murphy, score 62 I’d heard of several courses offering teaching to prepare graduates for GAMSAT, and now being the other side of the gauntlet, there are 3 points worth noting: 1. GradMed may be quite expensive but it’s worth every penny, especially so if you have no science background. The teaching is absolutely first rate. 2. Meeting with others suffering the same pressures as yourself is priceless. The mutual support and networking is valuable on so many levels and lasts well after GAMSAT is a distant memory. 3. I simply could not have passed GAMSAT without the strategic information and examination insights that support the comprehensive teaching syllabus at GradMed. Personally I do not see this as an optional extra, but an essential component to becoming fully prepared for the exam. David Worley, score 70 I just wanted to pass on my sincere thanks for all of the help this course gave me. As a humanities person, the GAMSAT was incredibly daunting and I put it off for years. After doing the full prep course in London I pulled of a score of 69 overall and am incredibly grateful for the focused, specific and exhaustive preparation the GRADMED course gave me. I wanted to send this through mainly for the people that think they will never be able to pass the science section – its not true. Alissa Barton, score 69 With a background in Modern Languages and Business, I was not sure that it was ever going to be possible to achieve my goal of becoming a Doctor. However, at 33 I was off to train at Nottingham University. Passing GAMSAT allowed me the opportunity that I needed. I attribute my success at GAMSAT to the excellent quality of the GRADMED courses. The quality of the teaching was uniformly excellent in spite of the vast amount of material covered in a short (but very intense!) period of time, not only in the sciences but also in verbal reasoning and written communications. A great experience all round! Jo Richardson, score 62

Thank you again for all your help and encouragement, I really couldn’t have done it without GradMed. Annika Ryberg, score 65 I just wanted to say thank you for your help with GAMSAT this year. I managed to get 63 overall and 78 in section 2. Los taught us for section 2 and I am embarrassed to say that, at my suggestion, myself and a few others left his class early one day to go for a glass of wine to blow off some steam. The thing is, it’s quite hard to maintain the effort when you’re studying every weekend for 3 months. I’d be grateful if you could give Los my thanks. Despite leaving class early, I did enjoy his classes and they worked, so thank you very much. Hannah Vaughan, score 63 A big thanks to all at GradMed for your help. I am convinced that without the courses I would have been flailing in the dark! I think that the course content was spot on and meeting all the other guys gave me the confidence that I was not making a big mistake by taking this leap of faith late in life. So a big thanks for helping the dream become reality. Jon Davies, score 69 My name is Hideyuki Baba and I took the intensive GAMSAT revision course last summer. I now have a place to study medicine at St George’s University of London and I want to thank everyone at GRADMED for the excellent revision course. Hideyuki Baba, score 62 Please pass on my thanks to all the tutors: Los, Rob, Vic and James. I got 62 or 63 (depending on calculations) overall, so I am eligible for an interview at St George’s, my first choice. It was my first attempt at the exam and I haven’t got a Science background. Julie Kermorgant, score 63 Hi GradMed and Paul, Hope you are all well. I wanted to let you know I scored a 63 overall, so I am very happy!! Thank you for all the help over the summer, I could not have done it without you! Rosh Patel, score 63

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HI Dan, Well GAMSAT results just came out, and I’m thrilled with my result, 65, I came to GradMed having not done science since GCSE and I must admit that your teaching was inspirational. I never thought I would be able to cope with the volume of information to learn, but you did it with aplomb (though the elephant shirt may need a style makeover …) – I was rather happy to see the lung volume graph in the exam to say the least. Considering my start point - I’m simply over the moon. No matter what happens in the interviews, my time at GradMed was well worth it and I’d give up my summer several times over to achieve what you managed in a small number of lessons. Ceri Haddon, score 65 I was absolutely thrilled (and shocked!) to make the cut off score of 61 for St George’s! Thank you all for your help and support over the summer. I am SURE I would not have passed without GradMed. Carole Reid, score 61 GradMed gives you the best chance of passing the GAMSAT. The lecturers really know their stuff and the material covers all the facts you need to know. It is definitely possible to work full-time and pass the exam with this course. Also, despite working full-time, I found that giving up my weekends wasn’t that hard, the courses were interesting and the lecturers kept you involved. All in all, a first-class training course. Mike Jewell, score 65 The course was so useful, it made a big difference to me. I got 74 in the exam so very, very pleased and wanted to say thank you! Richard Coates, score 74 I wanted to let you know my results. I got 69, which I’m very chuffed about! And a little surprised. I upped my score by 8 thanks to Gradmed. Thanks again for all your help! I hope you’re all enjoying a good rest. Chris Leveaux, score 69

Just wanted to say big thanks to you and all the lecturers, especially to Rob, Vic and James. Los’ harsh comments on my essays brought me down to earth which made me practice essay writing a lot, hence my best score was for section II (71). I found section I the most difficult even when practicing at home. But I was very surprised by my result in section III – I ran out of time, so had to guess 30 questions (literally just randomly ticking boxes in the answer sheet)! Taking into account my cultural and academic backgrounds, I still can’t believe I passed GAMSAT. Subsequently I got 2 interviews with Nottingham and St George’s, both medical schools came back with offers. As I said to Marea, I couldn’t have done it without the GradMed course. My science knowledge was pretty much non- existent plus English is not my mother tongue. The lecturers were fantastic, extremely knowledgeable and very helpful. Marea was also very helpful, encouraging us to persevere and providing the necessary reassurance, especially at the end of the course (when we were so demoralized by the complexity of the mock exam questions). So thank you again for the fantastic course, I wouldn’t have made it otherwise. Oksana Conway, score 63 It is hard to put into words exactly how brilliant your course is and how fantastic the teaching and advice has been ……… I really loved my weekends in London in class, making friends and learning at a rate that I did not think would be possible, thanks to the inspirational teaching of Rob, Paul and James. Not only were they extremely clear and thorough, but also they struck a balance between packing several months of concepts into a few days, and catering for the needs of all the members of the class. Collectively they did three huge things for me. By bringing science alive and always relating it to medicine, they gave me the confidence in interview to talk knowledgably about scientific matters. Then, they gave me the confidence to develop a strategy for the exam which allowed me to use my knowledge to tackle questions in unfamiliar areas of science – the very heart of the GAMSAT exam. Thirdly, they covered 90% of my Scottish Highers in Chemistry and Human Biology in 12 days! Nick Ord, score 65 I scored 63, 82 and 74 in Section I, II and III respectively. I think my score was 97th percentile in the country: I got interviews at St George’s, Peninsula and Nottingham. I have been recommending your course to any graduates considering entry into medicine. The Professor from Oxford who taught us English was absolutely brilliant, I have not met another lecturer like him. Thank you again for all your help, I really do appreciate it. Subhayan Podder, score 73

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I have been meaning to get in contact with you guys to thank you for all of your invaluable help with not only the GAMSAT but also what I would call ‘after care’. As this was the first time I had sat GAMSAT or anything of its kind, I was overjoyed to have got a score of 62, which meant I was able to get offers for interview for all my choices (Nottingham, St George’s and Peninsula). As it turns out I received offers from Nottingham and St George’s (my preferred choices) before my interview for Peninsula and so withdrew my application there. I am currently looking forward to starting medical school in Nottingham in September and am in no doubt that a large part of my good fortune is down to the GRADMED team, and as such have been a large advocate of yours when encouraging friends who wish to sit GAMSAT in the coming years. I cannot stress my gratitude to you all enough for your help and support through what has been a very stressful but ultimately rewarding time and I shall continue to express that to others. Martha Berhanu, score 62 I got 65, which I’m pleased with! Couldn’t have done it without the course! Thanks for all your help. Andrea Potter, score 65 I received an overall score of 66. With it being my first time sitting the GAMSAT and being from a non- science background I was absolutely ecstatic about these results. The course itself, and in particular the skills picked up along the way in terms of strategy, maths tricks and just learning to think differently, were invaluable. There’s no way I could have achieved the score I did with just three months study and as a beginner in physics and chemistry without the course. Thank you again for everything. Laura Stephen, score 66 It hardly seems like almost a year since the GradMed course. I thought I’d email to say a big thank you to all the team! I was invited to 3 interviews – St George’s, Swansea and Nottingham. I was then offered a place at both Nottingham and Swansea! I’ve accepted the offer at Nottingham and begin the course in September. I really don’t think I would have performed so well in the GAMSAT without the GradMed course. So thank you again to all involved, both teaching the course and behind the scenes organizing everything. Ciaran Magee, score 61

Thanks very much for all your help, I couldn’t have done it without you. Please also pass on my thanks to the lecturers, who were excellent. Jonathan Emett, score 67 I did well! In fact I got 70! Thanks so much for all your help. Sam Heaney, score 70 I thought I had failed but got 67! However, I am aware that there is no way that I would have had any kind of chance without the prep course and will be eternally grateful to the tutors and to all of you for your support. I can’t recommend it highly enough. Again thanks to all of you and especially to Maria for being the ear on the end of the phone when needed. Charlie Andrews, score 67 The Gradmed course gave me the confidence to know that I had a chance of getting through and picking up points on, what was for me, the most dreaded chemistry part of section III! Carina Bartlett, Score 68 I got 64! The strongest card I felt I had, thanks to the GradMed course, was that I could not be surprised by any of the questions! I could have wasted valuable time or even worse, panicked, had I not been given insight into techniques and approaches on those long summer weekends. I am in no doubt that without the course I would’ve sunk. James Bowthorpe, score 64 I scored 63 in my GAMSAT and I received an offer from Peninsula medical school. I am also on a reserve list elsewhere. I owe my good score in the GAMSAT to the excellence of the GradMed course. I traveled down from Scotland 3 weekends in a row to attend the course, it was definitely worth the time and the money. Jenny Clark, score 63 I managed to get 63, so thanks for all your help you gave me. Melissa Thomas, score 63

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Hi Paul,

Hi Guys, Cao offers came out last week and I got my first choice of UCD. I should be starting in September.

I hope you’re keeping well and getting many happy emails from the course group!

This wouldn’t have happened without your help. At the beginning of January this year, I had never even heard of things like Alkanes and had never done a Log equation. Without Gradmed I would have been completely lost and would have ended up studying a lot of irrelevant stuff. Gradmed provided me with guide rails that helped focus my study to the areas that were likely to come up and, as importantly, it helped me become comfortable with a way of thinking about problems that meant I had a chance with topics I had never seen before. Apart from prepping for the exam you made learning the science really interesting and helped reinforce that I was able to learn again in a classroom setting and that I was making the right choice moving into medicine/science.

Really delighted with my results, 69 overall (S1 67, S2 73, S3 68).

Felt pretty negative about S3 after the exam and was halfway to ruling myself out of getting in this year but here’s another example of GAMSAT performance being impossible to decipher. Anyways, for my first time and with a non-science background, couldn’t have done it without the team at Gradmed. The course made the process as easy and straightforward as possible, I just needed to put the hours in. I also just enjoyed learning the materials and watching the lectures, chemistry in particular, so doing the course was in itself a good way of making sure I’m making the right decision to do medicine.

Thanks again for all your help!

Anyways, really appreciate all the help and guidance throughout the process.

Cillian Fahey, score 63

All the best,

Morning All

David Nash, score 69

I wanted to say a massive thank you because this happened yesterday:

Hi Paul, Thanks so much for all the help and support, serious effort and results!

Section 1 - 72, Section 2 - 89, Section 3 - 59

I just received my results from acer and I got an overall score of 60. The same mark that I got in the invigilated mock!! Just wanted to reach out and let you know I’ve just accepted an offer from UCD! Appreciate all the work yourself and Dan put into the classes, I wouldn’t have come close to that score without

I never ever thought I would be able to get over the hurdle of section 3, and I left the exam in March in floods of tears because having done all that work it was still much harder than I was expecting and I was convinced I’d failed it again. But I remembered what you’d said Paul about waiting for results before panicking even though it felt like all was lost.

Thanks again to all the gradmed team!!

Most of all I’m delighted to never have to take it again!!

All the best,

Fingers crossed you’re getting a lot of these messages today, I definitely couldn’t have done it without your help and support so thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Eoin McCoy, score 60

Dear Gradmed,

Best wishes

I hope you are doing well.

Sarah Gregory, score 70

I wanted to first thank you for all the support you gave me during the prep for my GAMSAT exam in sept 2022. I received a score of 63 which is pretty good considering I only had 3 weeks to prep! Freddie Buller, score 63

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Hi Paul, hi Dan!

Good morning,

I got an overall score of 73 on the exam!

I wanted to email the both of you now that the GAMSAT scores are out.

Section 1: 57, Section 2: 64, Section 3: 85

Although I came out of that exam thinking I would be resitting in March for sure, feeling especially insecure about Section 3, in which I felt like I had given only ONE “known known” answer, I am happy to say that I may well not need to resit. I know that S3 was always my strong point, which is why I was particularly worried after the exam, as I was expecting it to be the section pulling me up, rather than down. But you were absolutely right in saying that there is no way of knowing how well we actually did, as I thought I had completely messed up S3, and it turned out more than well. I wanted to thank the both of you, and all of the Gradmed team of course, for all your help and support this summer. I had no idea of the beast I was signing up for when I decided to sit the GAMSAT, and most definitely would not have passed, let alone done this well, were it not for your help. The 3 months of intense preparation and the 2.5 very long months of wait for the results were absolutely worth it :) Thanks again, and I’ll be in touch again if I am lucky enough to progress to interviews (and hopefully an offer). Iris Zieler, score 69 I achieved an overall score of 69, scoring 72 in Section 3 (73 in S2, and 57 in S1)!

I’m honestly a little surprised because that’s higher than my gradmed final mock score, and I really felt like I didn’t do as well as I had done on the mock. My anxiety/stress got the better of me during section 3, and I ended up skipping/guessing more questions than usual. I hadn’t expected there to be so many questions that were exactly the same as one’s we had practiced, which really threw me off. That being said, I clearly did well, so thank you thank you thank you!! Thank you for all your help, guidance, and support. Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for being such amazing and encouraging teachers. How much you guys care about us succeeding makes all the difference. Finding teachers who care is hard, and I’m so grateful to the both of you. As I’m sure you’re aware, the Irish universities just released their offers on Thursday, and I’m very excited to say that I have been offered a place to study Medicine at UCD! I just wanted to express my gratitude towards you as I know that I definitely would not be here without all your support and guidance throughout the Gradmed course. Thank you so much for your patience despite all the stupid questions and for facilitating such a positive learning environment which made all the long hours enjoyable. Your dedication to this course is admirable and the knowledge you have provided us with has been and will be of much use in the coming years, I’m sure. I received a score of 60 overall (and even got 62 on science section!) which is a whole 11 points more than last year (I got 49 overall)!. Excited to be starting this next chapter and will keep you updated! Milena Jensen, score 60 Thanks again and hope you’re both doing well. Beryl Arnould, score 73 Dear Paul, I hope you’re well!

Hi all at Gradmed,

Just wanted to let you know I have been accepted to RCSI to start medicine in September - absolutely delighted!

Thanks a million for all the help, the course was brilliant!

Kind regards

Sally Coman, score 61

Hi Paul,

Hi Paul and Dan and Admin team,

I hope you are well. I am emailing to tell you I got an overall score of 59 in the GAMSAT so I would like to thank you for all your help as I definitely could not have achieved this result without the course. Mary Curran, score 59

I just wanted to let you know I got a 62! Thank you so much for getting me through it I couldn’t have done it first time without you! Imogen Neely, score 62

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We have also included just a few comments from some of the many hundreds of our alumni who are now well on the way to fulfilling their career aspirations...

I’ve been working like a dog since GradMed! I scored in the 98th percentile on GAMSAT, got accepted in 2 schools, studied at St George’s, graduated with my MBBS and am now a Foundation Year 1 (aka House Officer) on my 2nd rotation in Gastro Medicine in South Yorkshire. Long hours, crazy patients and not enough annual leave! I trust GradMed is still going strong? Many of my course-mates at St George’s were GradMed alumni! Many thanks to GradMed for helping me reach my dream! Alex Jobs Hi. How nice to hear from you. I have you guys to thank for the fact that I am now 2/3 the way through 1st year at George’s and all is great! Couldn’t be happier! Nick Nabarro After taking my GAMSAT I received a score of 63 and therefore got a place on the graduate entry medicine course at the University of Nottingham. I have now been studying there for two terms, and I am having a wonderful time. I thoroughly appreciate the support and insight the GradMed course provided and I have been recommending it to several people who are interested in graduate medicine. Alice Armitage I was offered places at St George’s, Nottingham and Peninsula and accepted George’s. I graduated in 2013 – graduate-entry at George’s is tough especially on the arts graduates. Quality of teaching at Gradmed was excellent. At medical school it very rarely matched the standard of your tutors. Anyway I start core Psychiatry training in August which I’m delighted about as that was the only speciality I wanted to do from the outset. Gradmed was definitely worth it! Guy Stewart I am currently studying medicine at St George’s so big thanks to GradMed for helping me achieve my goal. Katharine Wykes

I’m coming to the end of my 3rd year of the 4-year Graduate Entry Programme in University College Dublin, which was my first choice. After doing your course in London and sitting the GAMSAT there I worked for a few months and then went travelling before starting studying here the following September. Liadhan Coakley I’m currently in my 2nd year of the GEP course at St George’s. Passed the GAMSAT first time (thanks to the GradMed course!) and got offered a deferred place. Rebecca Marlow Thanks for your e-mail. I passed GAMSAT from the first attempt, got offers from St George’s and Nottingham, and accepted the one from St George’s. I am now in my final year of MBBS4, graduating this June (providing I pass the exams, of course). If everything goes well, I will be starting my FY1 post in Brighton in July. I know I wouldn’t have passed GAMSAT without GRADMED, so I am happy to recommend it to anyone! Thank you. Oksana Dickinson Just to let you know that after GradMed and the “most horrendous exam in the world” the GAMSAT I was successfully accepted to Deakin Medical School in Australia and I am currently in my second year as a medical student. Thanks to all your teachings and Dan’s exceptionally good Biology teaching I was able to successfully reach my dreams and not only get into medical school but pass the first year and be doing well in my second. Due to my length of time out of school prior to sitting the GAMSAT there is no possible way I would have passed without the help of your teaching. The tips we were given on essay writing enabled me to obtain an adequate grade and the science section, I would not have known were to begin.

So thank you!!!

Sharon Pickering

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Was good to hear from you!

Well what can I say. I wouldn’t be where I am today without GradMed. Having come from a non- science background (I studied Business and Law as my undergraduate degree), I achieved a 64 on my very first and only sitting of the GAMSAT. I took the long course in Imperial College, London, almost 3 summers back now and I am due to finish my second year of Graduate Entry Medicine in University College Dublin. The fact that I only had to sit the GAMSAT once meant I was able to go to Italy for the year to play rugby, my other passion, before I started the following September. I have since referred countless numbers of friends, and friends of friends to the course and would in fact consider myself almost like a marketing agent for you guys. Every teacher I had was amazing. Thank you so much. I have very fond memories of my summer of study in London and Imperial College. I am now an intern in St Vincent’s hospital in Dublin and have an internal medicine residency position in UNC, Chapel Hill in North Carolina starting this June. Kevin Sheahan Thanks to Gradmed I was actually studying for 3rd year finals when I received your recent email, so I was a little distracted! Since taking the GAMSAT I was accepted to study St George’s 4-year graduate medical degree taught at the University of Nicosia. I am now a final year medical student doing my clinical years in Chicago. Charlotte Foster Thanks for your email. No I haven’t forgotten about you at GradMed and I have since recommended your course to many people! I’m currently in my third year in the graduate entry programme in University College Cork. Connie O Reilly I’m graduating this summer and starting work as an academic F1 in North Central London. GradMed seems like it was the start of a very long journey. Ruth Richardson I’m currently in Yr 2 of the Graduate Entry Programme in RCSI, Dublin. I attended your course in early 2010 and sat GAMSAT for the first time in March 2010. I scored 62 and enrolled in September 2010. Your course was excellent! Sean Flynn

I was accepted by St George’s and am now completing my 3rd year! I’ve also managed to have a baby a couple of months ago and now continuing with my studies. Thank you GradMed - I found your course really helpful and it certainly prepared me through GAMSAT. Charlotte Ndelu Nice to hear from you. I’m currently studying for the first year of the GEP programme at St George’s and I’m loving it. Thank you so much to GradMed for all the help - I couldn’t be more pleased to be doing this! Esther Lousada Every day I wake up and am delighted that I’m doing this. Its an incredible feeling, I feel very privileged to have been given this opportunity. I’m still incredibly grateful to you both for the course and the support, without which I probably wouldn’t be here now. Louise Forster Thanks for your email. I’m back in Australia actually, in my second year of Medicine at the University of Sydney. After I did the course with you guys, my score was pretty good, I got an interview in Sydney and here I am! I’m also working part-time in law - I’m really enjoying medicine, but didn’t want to completely relinquish all legal skills! Claire Poli I got a 70 on the GAMSAT and started the St George’s graduate (GEP) MBBS course September 2010. It would have been a lot harder to do without GradMed - so I am very pleased I spent all those weekend days up at Imperial with you! Alice Dawson

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I’m in third year graduate medicine in UCC Cork. I got 64 in the GAMSAT thanks to the GradMed course which I found invaluable! I love the course and hope to be a GP in a few years! Vanessa Collins I got 60 in GAMSAT and am now a first year GEM student in Nottingham in Derby, had to defer a year as I had a baby! It is very hard work but overall I’m enjoying it. I’d definitely recommend your course as I really think it helped focus my studying and made me understand what it was that was needed to pass GAMSAT. Lucy Cooke Many thanks for your email. I am currently in my second year at St George’s on their graduate entry programme, with a few of the people I did my GradMed course with! I’m not sure I would have passed the GAMSAT as well as I did if it weren’t for GradMed, so thank you to all of the staff. St George’s was my first choice, so I am thrilled to be here and now nearly half way through! Gemma Holohan I completed the Gradmed full prep course and am now at St George’s. Thanks again for the brilliant classes last year. I found them and the material provided very helpful and they helped me being well prepared for the GAMSAT exam. Meeting Clarissa and Adam at their Gradmed talk was inspirational and incredibly helpful. I found their advice invaluable. I’m still in touch with Clarissa and she has been very supportive throughout the process and the transition towards life as a student as St George’s! With sincere thanks. Anne Geniets Can’t believe I am coming towards the end of my first year at SGUL, pretty busy basically! Best wishes to all the tutors who took us through the course so well! Ceri Haddon

Just to let you know I have just passed my finals at Nottingham! Thank you for helping me to get there. Amy Alsop I am currently in my 3rd year of graduate entry medicine at St George’s University of London and enjoying every minute of it. Thank you for all your help all those summers ago! Elin Cox I really did not expect to get four offers ….. meeting everyone on your course who also had this career change idea really helped, and I firmly believe your course has helped me immensely at Edinburgh, and as a doctor. Nick Ord I am now happily in my first year of GEM at Nottingham University and with formative assessments and OSCEs I scored in the 2nd best percentile. All this has been possible thanks to GRADMED. I would love to mentor students …. A wonderful empowering experience. A way of giving back to you to the GRADMED family Dana Rinaldi I would like to congratulate those of you enrolling on the Gradmed course. You are going to have an incredible three months. I cold not have passed the GAMSAT without Gradmed; I rediscovered the joy of studying and I gained a focus from the structure of the course, the tutors and fellow students (some of whom are with me at St George’s). Clarissa Young

GRADMED SINCE 2002

020 7584 5818 info@gradmed.co.uk www.gamsat.co.uk