Can anyone Justify me spending hundred on Des O Neils ?

coffee maniac

I have Heard that this material is brilliant but is there anyone who has done the GAMSAT and believe they did brilliant because of their use of this material ?

Noobjockey

Hey, since nobody seems to have replied, I'll do my best to give a satisfactroy answer! I don't think it's worth the money. To be honest, I didn't actually do that great in the GAMSAT (59 overall) so it might seem a bit silly for me to giving this advice. But I never studied chemistry or biology in my life before this and had to do them from scratch so in that respect I feel like I can give you an opinion :P

I don't think you can really study all that well for the first section. It's about reading between the lines. I don't think you can necessarily be taught how to do section 1. And it really isn't that difficult. The main problem is time and being able to read fast enough to do all the questions.

Section 2 is essay writing and I just handed any essays I wrote to my old english teacher. If you know of anyone who has a bent for the language and can offer good constructive criticism, it works out just as well as a set of notes I feel. I picked quotes at random from books and wrote about them. It may not seem like the greatest approach but I did best in Section 2 (75).

The hardest section is section 3 I think. I can understand why some might find it easier with the notes because there's probably a lot more linearity in the notes. Still, I just got a leaving cert chemistry book and a first year college book and went from there. I was also told that 'Organic Chemistry for Dummies' was helpful so I bought that second hand (around 8 euro) and it turned out to be very good. Again, time was the biggest factor for me, not lack of knowledge, and I don't think I'd have done any better with any pre-written notes.

I hope I don't come across as too cynical or anything because there are a lot of people out there who did brilliantly by using the Des O' Neill notes but similarly, people who did well without. I did about a months preparation before the exam but since I never studied chemistry or biology, I probably didn't give myself enough time. However, I will emphasise that it is entirely possible to do this without prescribed notes. If I was to do it again, I would give myself a longer period of time to study. A month isn't long enough. Especially if you're weak in/have never done one of the subjects.

There is absolutely no harm in getting the notes. If you're feeling lost while studying or you're simply not confident in your abilities to teach yourself, you should look for some preparation material. But if you think you'll have no problems picking up new information, to save yourself the money, I'd go without. Hope this helps.

Good luck!

coffee maniac

Noobjockey wrote: »

Hey, since nobody seems to have replied, I'll do my best to give a satisfactroy answer! I don't think it's worth the money. To be honest, I didn't actually do that great in the GAMSAT (59 overall) so it might seem a bit silly for me to giving this advice. But I never studied chemistry or biology in my life before this and had to do them from scratch so in that respect I feel like I can give you an opinion :P

I don't think you can really study all that well for the first section. It's about reading between the lines. I don't think you can necessarily be taught how to do section 1. And it really isn't that difficult. The main problem is time and being able to read fast enough to do all the questions.

Section 2 is essay writing and I just handed any essays I wrote to my old english teacher. If you know of anyone who has a bent for the language and can offer good constructive criticism, it works out just as well as a set of notes I feel. I picked quotes at random from books and wrote about them. It may not seem like the greatest approach but I did best in Section 2 (75).

The hardest section is section 3 I think. I can understand why some might find it easier with the notes because there's probably a lot more linearity in the notes. Still, I just got a leaving cert chemistry book and a first year college book and went from there. I was also told that 'Organic Chemistry for Dummies' was helpful so I bought that second hand (around 8 euro) and it turned out to be very good. Again, time was the biggest factor for me, not lack of knowledge, and I don't think I'd have done any better with any pre-written notes.

I hope I don't come across as too cynical or anything because there are a lot of people out there who did brilliantly by using the Des O' Neill notes but similarly, people who did well without. I did about a months preparation before the exam but since I never studied chemistry or biology, I probably didn't give myself enough time. However, I will emphasise that it is entirely possible to do this without prescribed notes. If I was to do it again, I would give myself a longer period of time to study. A month isn't long enough. Especially if you're weak in/have never done one of the subjects.

There is absolutely no harm in getting the notes. If you're feeling lost while studying or you're simply not confident in your abilities to teach yourself, you should look for some preparation material. But if you think you'll have no problems picking up new information, to save yourself the money, I'd go without. Hope this helps.

Good luck!

Thanks for the reply ... 59 is really good considering you did only a months study and had never done Chem or Physics before - that would be enough for Limerick ..

I do have alot of time . im doing it in sept. but it is reccommended anyway to have about 6 months prep anyway . I just am kind of freaking out a bit so if i was to look at the Des O neils notes , even just for practice I hope they help a little ...

Thanks again for the reply

etymon

Don't bother- DIY.