Since introducing and bringing online the 'INTRODUCTION' of this UMAT site to my readers I have been inundated with several questions regarding the purpose of this site and why I'm doing it. I'm a regular person just like you, regular with a passion and zeal for success in every challenge and at this stage of life it is studies - for some it's UMAT, work, or relationships.
UMAT + Interview is a powerful screening test for one to become a health professional: it can reduce the number of intake significantly and is believed to select substantial and quality students to study the program. Yet within medical school, you can find a diverse range of students. Through communication with lecturers (as well as doctors, dentists and pharmacists), majority understand the purpose and the need of such screening process, but whether they agree it's a very mixed and grey area. Personally I'm divided in opinion - I believe there must be some sort of screening process otherwise the sheer number of applicants would be overpowering. Around the year 1990s, achieving a perfect score in high school was the criteria to make one eligible as an medical student applicant. However, not all who succeeded in that wanted a career in healthcare.
I do believe that if you're passionate, zealous and determined on studying such a bachelor program, then by all means we need YOU in our aging society. Simply put, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy or optometry may appear as a hard bachelor program - but in fact its just hard work and memorization. If you've got the passion I believe you'll do fine! UMAT + Interview can potentially knock out students like these [I'm sure people can argue otherwise, but this is what I personally feel]. I believe true determination and strive are also within those considering the GAMSAT pathway into such bachelor programs. To me they show an undefeated determination of pursuit.
Getting to my point:
Wikipedia is an awesome open source website with a mountain of information. It's not considered a reliable source but you'd be surprised how many students use it for help with studies! I remember during one of it's donation period it had a head banner saying: "Information is free - let's keep it that way" or something along those lines. People across the globe put lots of effort into making information accessible to all - and that why its translated into so many languages. That is also why we able to know so much. And sometimes it's just easier to understand complex things through simple explanation.
My heart is that even if its ever so little, won't it be awesome the day there's a wiki on UMAT: full of details, answers, tips and guides online - with everyone contributing, sharing knowledge - all accessible online? We have a large resource of untapped potential lying within every single person that's alive: academic, knowledge, experience and all. Why stop it on UMAT? Why not a wiki on medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, optometry for every year level for every student studying within Australia? You can say what you want, but I believe we're all in this together...
Sorry to hear soooooooooo many have been ripped off by these curry run "bring a group" discount courses! Missed Entry sux!
The above post by 'Anonymous' is actually by Dallas Gibson, the serial bankrupt, see:
http://www.medentry.edu.au/response.asp
because back in my walk of life umat was the obstacle for me, not gamsat. If possible i would have continued on.