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Australia · Admissions test

GAMSAT Section 3: Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences

It’s the longest part of the test: 75 multiple-choice questions in 150 minutes, at a test centre after the Humanities section, and it counts twice in your overall score. The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) calls it Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences. In prep courses, including GradReady’s, it goes by GAMSAT Section 3.

  • 75Multiple-choice questions
  • 150 minutesTime allowed
  • 2 parts in 4Weight in the overall score
Where to study

Updated October 2026 · Written from official sources, listed at the bottom of this page

What does GAMSAT Section 3 cover?

SubjectShareKnowledge level
Chemistry40%First-year university
Biology40%First-year university
Physics20%Year 12, A-level or Leaving Certificate

Questions from the three subjects are mixed through the section. The material comes as text, maths, graphs, tables and diagrams, and ACER says the test focuses mainly on problem solving and using that knowledge, not on recall alone.

GAMSAT physics, chemistry and biology skills

As well as recall of basic science concepts, ACER lists skills such as these:

  • Spotting what you know in a new context, and analysing and interpreting data.
  • Finding relationships and turning information from one form into another.
  • Forming and testing hypotheses, and working out consequences from models.
  • Following and judging a line of reasoning, and weighing evidence.
  • Estimating, interpolating, extrapolating and knowing the limits of accuracy.

ACER says success will be difficult without good knowledge of the biological and physical sciences. If your degree isn’t in science, it highly recommends preparing in the basic sciences to first-year university level, perhaps with a bridging course.

Calculators and working space

Calculators aren’t allowed. You can work on a small erasable whiteboard, no bigger than about A4, or on scratch paper: two A4 sheets for each section, given out at the centre if you don’t bring a whiteboard. You wipe the board or hand in the paper at the end.

Section 3 practice questions

ACER’s online Sciences practice tests run 75 new questions in 150 minutes in a copy of the test screen, and both practice test e-books include a full Sciences test from past papers.

ACER GAMSAT practice tests →How the overall score is worked out →Section 1: Humanities →Section 2: Written Communication →All sections and timing →
Sources: ACER · GradReady and 2 more. Checked October 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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