GAT 2014 Discussion + Tips + Answers

[deborahchew]

Hi everyone! This is my second time taking the GAT and I thought it was pretty easy and fun to do this year.

Here are some tips for future GAT takers:
- Since English is the 'most important' subject, instead of spending 30 minutes on each essay, I think it's definitely more useful to take 40 mins (15 mins reading time, 40 mins essay 1, 40 mins essay 2, 90 mins MCQ, 10 mins shading)
- Do the essays first (requires more thinking and effort)
- I found it useful to find and do all the humanities questions first and then the maths and science, instead of jumping between the two areas
- During the 15 mins reading time, I outlined how I was going to approach the essays (alternatively, you could answer the first 10 MCQ's in your head)
- For essay 1, instead of doing a traditional essay, I think examiners like to see some creativity so I did a magazine article, for essay 2, I did a letter to the editor (you could do a speech, opinion article etc)
- Don't SLEEP (half my year fell asleep, you're already there so you might as well try your best, you have nothing to lose!)

Now, for the 2014 cohort, what did you guys think? What did you write for the second essay? And since we all have the question booklet, are there any MCQ's you weren't too sure of? Fire away!

[walkec]

I quite enjoyed the GAT today, as weird as that sounds to say. I had a lot of fun writing both the writing tasks. For the first task I did a speech as a student trying to remove the stigma attached to chess to encourage his classmates to take up chess as a pastime. I also liked the prompts for the second task because we did surveillance as our issue for language analysis in English this year, so I had many examples I could draw on to make my piece stand out  I wrote the second piece as an argumentative essay.

MCQ were pretty standard. A few whacky ones thrown in for good measure, but they were what I was expecting. I do agree about putting more time into the writing tasks. I spent about 45 minutes on each writing task, so it's a little bit longer than suggested but not too much.

[Zealous]

Here are some tips for future GAT takers:
- Since English is the 'most important' subject, instead of spending 30 minutes on each essay, I think it's definitely more useful to take 40 mins (15 mins reading time, 40 mins essay 1, 40 mins essay 2, 90 mins MCQ, 10 mins shading)

8 seconds to shade each bubble? That's very generous of you. 

I definitely agree regarding English, there's no harm in spending more time than suggested on the English essays. I certainly did today and I think my pieces turned out much better than last year.

[deborahchew]

8 seconds to shade each bubble? That's very generous of you. 

Well, I factored in the OCD people who need to shade every single inch in that bubble 

I loved how they put in a topic that is very current (surveillance state, security cameras, privacy). I'm sure the examiners will have very interesting essays to read.

Oh, and I enjoyed the lights flashing on and off question as well as the deciphering the code one (made me feel almost like a spy)!

The map of New York City did my head in... anyone else struggle with that?

[lmnop]

It was fairly standard for me, I've mainly had problems with some of those text analysis questions.

Btw, what do you put for that question which asks you name an area which doesn't refer back to any early occupation during the 17th century or something? (It isn't Beaver Street is it?)         

[Vermilliona]

Nah I thought beaver street did refer to early occupation coz there was a big fur industry + it was all forests and stuff. I put Brooklyn bridge

[Phy124]

Suggested multiple choice answers are as follows:

1.     C
2.     C
3.     C
4.     C
5.     C
6.     C
7.     C
8.     C
9.     C
10.   C
11.   C
12.   C
13.   C
14.   C
15.   C
16.   C
17.   C
18.   C
19.   C
20.   C
21.   C
22.   C
23.   C
24.   C
25.   C
26.   C
27.   C
28.   C
29.   C
30.   C
31.   C
32.   C
33.   C
34.   C
35.   C
36.   C
37.   C
38.   C
39.   C
40.   C
41.   C
42.   C
43.   C
44.   C
45.   C
46.   C
47.   C
48.   C
49.   C
50.   C
51.   C
52.   C
53.   C
54.   C
55.   C
56.   C
57.   C
58.   C
59.   C
60.   C
61.   C
62.   C
63.   C
64.   C
65.   C
66.   C
67.   C
68.   C
69.   C
70.   C

Hope you all did well

[deborahchew]

Btw, what do you put for that question which asks you name an area which doesn't refer back to any early occupation during the 17th century or something? (It isn't Beaver Street is it?)         

I put Wall Street, but reading it over again, just realised Wall Street = trading. Hahaha. Got that one wrong.

What about the art one? Was choosing between dynamic and vibrant or melodramatic and daring. Art students, help!

[deborahchew]

I have seen great intolerance in the support for intolerance...self-defeating or hypocritical?

[Mieow]

Suggested multiple choice answers are as follows:

Hope you all did well

I was so close 

[lmnop]

I put Wall Street, but reading it over again, just realised Wall Street = trading. Hahaha. Got that one wrong.

What about the art one? Was choosing between dynamic and vibrant or melodramatic and daring. Art students, help!

Really, I thought the "wall" was in reference to the how fortified the area was (in the context of the question). I put "dynamic and vibrant" for the art one, mainly because of the phrase "brightly coloured" which sticks out somewhere in the passage.

[Yacoubb]

Maths questions were REALLY easy! Really happy with my first piece for English, not too happy for my second piece though. I think I thought I had less time than I actually did, and so I rushed it. The humanities based questions I really just guessed tbh. I'm just glad it's over!

 

I have seen great intolerance in the support for intolerance...self-defeating or hypocritical?

I did hypocritical!

[Jono_CP]

For the persuasive piece I mentioned as my outside sources: Mohammed Ali and juxtaposed his appreciation for cameras with the reclusive Michael Jackson.

Since I couldn't get any poignant quotes for the prompts, had to rely on George Orwell's 1984 dystopian novel for the 'privacy/government' prompt. Also mentioned Tony Abbott presumably 'tapping' the phones of Australian's according to Clive Palmer in the House of Representatives.

Not my best written pieces to be brutally honest - had some trouble with the specific contexts of the prompts in question.

I legitimately guessed every single multiple choice question. Was not 100% sure on any one of them - especially the maths/science ones. God help me...

[noneofyourbusiness]

I had no idea what was going on in some parts and had to rush the last 10 questions. What are your thoughts on The Tantrum/hair cutting one, the baseball one and code words one.
Thanks

[lmnop]

Also, what do you guys get for that question which asks you calculate the average time it
takes to produce x pieces of timber?