Section 3 · physics
GAMSAT physics questions
The smallest block in Section 3, the one candidates fear most, and the only science ACER assumes at school level rather than university level. Those three facts should change how you prepare for it.
The proportion nobody checks before panicking
Physics is 20% of Section 3 — roughly 15 of 75 questions, against 40% each for biology and chemistry. It is the smallest of the three sciences by some margin.
It is also the one non-science graduates spend the most time on. If you have not studied physics since school, that instinct is understandable and it is usually a bad allocation: 15 questions cannot carry a Section 3 score on their own, and the reading load in the other 60 is where most lost marks actually sit.
- 20%of Section 3 is physics
- ~15of 75 questions in a real paper
- 21original physics questions here
- 7stimulus units, as in the real exam
Physics is assumed at a lower level than biology or chemistry
This is the single most useful fact on this page, and it comes straight from ACER’s own statement of assumed knowledge: the first year of university studies in biology and chemistry, and A-level/Leaving Certificate/Year 12 in physics.
Read that carefully. Biology and chemistry are assumed at first-year university. Physics is assumed at A-level, Leaving Certificate or Year 12 — a full stage lower. ACER is explicitly not expecting a physics degree, or even a first-year university physics unit.
That asymmetry is real and it is almost never stated in preparation material, which tends to present Section 3 as three equal sciences at one level. It is not. A candidate deciding where to spend a limited number of study hours is being told, by the exam body, that the physics bar is the lowest of the three.
What that does and does not mean
It does not mean physics questions are easy. A Year 12 concept can be wrapped in an unfamiliar system, a novel graph or a two-step chain of reasoning, and that is exactly what GAMSAT does with it.
It means the recall burden is small and bounded. If you are re-teaching yourself university mechanics or quantum physics for this exam, you are studying above the level being tested.
What a physics question actually asks you to do
Almost always: apply one relationship to a situation you have not seen before.
| What it looks like | What is being tested |
|---|---|
| An apparatus you have never seen, with one variable changed | Predicting the direction of an effect, not computing an exact value |
| A graph of one quantity against another, with an unusual axis | Reading gradient, intercept or proportionality out of an unfamiliar plot |
| A relationship stated in the stimulus, then applied twice | Chaining two steps without losing a factor or a unit along the way |
| A set of results from a described experiment | Distinguishing what the data shows from what it would need to show |
| Numbers chosen to make the arithmetic clean | Whether you spotted that the arithmetic was meant to be clean |
The recurring territory at the assumed level is mechanics and motion, forces and energy, waves and sound, electricity and circuits, and enough unit reasoning to catch an answer that is out by a factor. Anything above that level is supplied in the question’s own stimulus — if a relationship is needed and it is not school physics, it will be given to you.
A real Section 3 allows 2.0 minutes a question including stimulus reading. That budget, not the physics, is what most answers are lost to. There is no official syllabus — ACER publishes none — so ours is reverse-engineered and labelled as such on the syllabus page.
How much physics preparation is worth it?
An honest answer, because the incentive everywhere else is to tell you the answer is “more”. Physics is 20% of a section that is itself weighted double in ACER’s overall score — so about a tenth of your weighted result, and less than that at the universities which use an unweighted average or rank on sections.
For a candidate who did school physics, the efficient move is timed practice to rebuild speed, not content revision. For a candidate who never did school physics, there is a genuine floor to build — but it is a Year 12 floor, reachable in weeks rather than months, and it should not consume the study time that biology and chemistry have four times the claim on.
Sit a timed physics question set
Every physics unit in our Section 3 bank, run under a clock with a worked explanation for each item on submit. The real section interleaves all three sciences, so treat this as targeted revision rather than a simulation of exam day.
21 questions available. The real section has 75, so treat this as a diagnostic rather than a full sitting. The clock still runs the whole 150 minutes, which is deliberately generous — pace yourself against the real per-question budget rather than against the timer, or the timing practice is worthless.
Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences
- Questions
- 21(sample — the real section has 75)
- Time limit
- 150 min
- • No calculator, formula sheet or periodic table — as in the real exam.
- • Every constant you need appears in the question’s own material.
- • You can flag questions and return to them before submitting.
- • Scoring happens when you submit. Nothing is saved and no signup is required.
The conditions we replicate
- No calculator, as in the real exam. Every item is solvable by hand.
- No formula sheet and no periodic table.Every constant a question needs appears in that question’s own material.
- Shared stimulus units. Questions attach to a common piece of material in groups, as they do in the real section — not as isolated one-offs.
- All questions carry equal value, which is ACER’s own stated position, and nothing is deducted for a wrong answer.
- Original questions.Nothing here is transcribed from an ACER paper or another provider’s bank — see scope and limitations.
Frequently asked questions
How much of the GAMSAT is physics?
Physics is 20% of Section 3 — about 15 of its 75 questions, and the smallest of the three sciences. Because Section 3 is weighted double in ACER’s overall score, physics is roughly a tenth of your weighted result.
What level of physics do I need for the GAMSAT?
ACER assumes the first year of university studies in biology and chemistry, and A-level/Leaving Certificate/Year 12 in physics. Physics is the one science assumed at school level rather than first-year university, so the recall required is materially less than for biology or chemistry. Anything beyond that level is supplied in the question’s stimulus.
Can I do well in Section 3 without physics?
You can do well without a physics background — the assumed level is Year 12 and the block is 20% of the section. Skipping physics entirely is a different proposition: you would be conceding around 15 questions in a section weighted double. Build the floor, then spend your remaining time where the other 60 questions are.
Is a calculator allowed?
No. Section 3 is sat without a calculator, which is why the numbers in well-written physics items are chosen to keep the arithmetic light. If a calculation is turning ugly, that is usually a signal you have taken a longer route than the question intended.
Are these real GAMSAT questions?
No, and nobody may lawfully publish those. Every item here is written from scratch to ACER’s published style and skills list. See past papers for why the PDFs circulating online are a problem.